A pair of veteran names will be the third men in the cage for UFC 232’s much-anticipated championship double-header.
Referee Herb Dean was selected Monday by the Nevada Athletic Commission to officiate the Dec. 29 rematch between Jon Jones and Alexander Gustafsson, which is slated to take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Nevada regulars Sal D’Amato, Derek Cleary, and Junichiro Kamijo were selected to judge the contest, which will be for the UFC light heavyweight title that is expected to be vacated by current champion Daniel Cormier.
As for the night’s co-main event, veteran referee Marc Goddard was selected to oversee the women’s superfight between featherweight champion Cris Cyborg and bantamweight titleholder Amanda Nunes. The judges for the contest will be Chris Lee, Dave Hagen, and Mike Bell.
Jones (22-1, 1 NC) is returning from a 15-month USADA suspension for his second major drug-testing failure. He and Gustafsson (18-4) fought once before at UFC 165, where Jones battled back from early adversity to win a legendary contest over the Swede via unanimous decision back in 2013.
Cyborg (20-1, 1 NC) and Nunes (16-4) are two of the most decorated women in mixed martial arts today. Cyborg is a perfect 5-0 in the UFC and is widely regarded as one of the greatest female fighters ever. Nunes has won seven consecutive contests, including victories over Valentina Shevchenko (x2), Ronda Rousey, and Miesha Tate.
Poll
Who wins at UFC 232?
This poll is closed
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51%
Jones and Cyborg
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30%
Gustafsson and Cyborg
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9%
Jones and Nunes
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7%
Gustafsson and Nunes