After several weeks of not knowing what to do with themselves, UFC fans (and MMA fans in general) finally see the sport back in full swing.
While Bellator MMA vs. RIZIN capped off 2022 quite nicely, it was the only MMA action from a major promotion (or promotions, more accurately) for weeks. But this Saturday, the UFC returns to the Apex to kick off its 2023 with UFC Vegas 67 (UFC Fight Night 217), featuring Sean Strickland vs. Nassourdine Imavov in a light heavyweight main event.
Light heavyweight, you ask? Strickland and Imavov are, of course, two of the promotion’s better middleweights. But Imavov, headlining a UFC card for the first time, had been paired up with Kelvin Gastelum. Then Gastelum acquired some busted teeth in training just days out from the fight (maybe ease off the sparring during fight week!), and was forced to pull out.
That led to Strickland stepping up, and the fight moving up a weight class to accommodate him, given the minimal time left to make weight. The move also finds Strickland headlining his second consecutive UFC event: he closed out last year by topping UFC Vegas 66, coming up short against Jared Cannonier in a split decision that many felt could have gone the other way.
There’s an upside for both fighters here: Imavov gets a higher ranked opponent, regardless of weight class. And Strickland gets a chance to get the bad taste the Cannonier loss left with him out of his mouth.
Weigh-ins for UFC Vegas 67 go down Friday morning in Las Vegas; check below for results.
About one hour into Friday’s weigh-in, the UFC announced that due to “weight management issues,” Sijara Eubanks was off the card. Opponent Priscila Cachoeira had already made weight.
UFC Vegas 67: Strickland vs. Imavov Weigh-In Results
Main card
Light Heavyweight: Sean Strickland (204) vs. Nassourdine Imavov (194)
Featherweight: Dan Ige (145.5) vs. Damon Jackson (145.5)
Middleweight: Punahele Soriano (185.5) vs. Roman Kopylov (185)
Women’s Bantamweight: Ketlen Vieira (136) vs. Raquel Pennington (135.5)
Bantamweight: Umar Nurmagomedov (135) vs. Raoni Barcelos (135)
Preliminary card
Bantamweight: Javid Basharat (136) vs. Mateus Mendonça (134.5)
Middleweight: Abdul Razak Alhassan (185.5) vs. Claudio Ribeiro (183)
Lightweight: Mateusz Rębecki (155.5) vs. Nick Fiore (155)
Flyweight: Allan Nascimento (125.5) vs. Carlos Hernandez (125)
Featherweight: Daniel Argueta (146) vs. Nick Aguirre (145.5)
Flyweight: Jimmy Flick (126) vs. Charles Johnson (126)
Women’s Flyweight: Priscila Cachoeira (126) vs. Sijara Eubanks () cancelled due to “weight management issues” on the part of Eubanks
