UFC Tampa finally has a main event set.
The December 14, 2024 Fight Night event takes place at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida, and has been looking for a headliner for weeks. While there were rumors of Umar Nurmagomedov vs. Song Yadong topping the marquee, that fight quickly disintegrated (and never made much sense to begin with).
On Friday, however, promotion officials announced that welterweights Ian Machado Garry (15-0) and Joaquin Buckley (20-6) would top the event. The fight pits the #7-ranked and #9-ranked 170lb’ers against one another.
Garry, who holds that #7 spot, is coming off a win over former Bellator MMA title challenger Michael “Venom” Page. That decision win came at UFC 303 in June, and improved the Irish star’s record in the UFC to 8-0 overall.
Buckley has won five straight fights since returning to the welterweight division. Most recently, “Newmansa” knocked out Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson.
UFC Tampa on Dec. 14, 2024 now features the following reported match-ups:
- Ian Machado Garry vs. Joaquin Buckley
- Mackenzie Dern vs. Amanda Ribas
- Cub Swanson vs. Billy Quarantillo
- Tracy Cortez vs. Miranda Maverick
- Michael Johnson vs. Ottman Azaitar
- Joel Álvarez vs. Drakkar Klose
- Vitor Petrino vs. Dustin Jacoby
- Manel Kape vs. Bruno Gustavo da Silva
- Navajo Stirling vs. Tuco Tokkos
- Josefine Lindgren Knutsson vs. Piera Rodriguez
- Davey Grant vs. Ramon Taveras
- Sean Woodson vs. Fernando Padilla
- Daniel Marcos vs. Adrian Yañez
