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UFC announces full lineups for July events on ‘Fight Island,’ including four title fights

By Mike Heck Updated
Esther Lin, MMA Fighting

The UFC has announced its full slate for their trip to “Fight Island” next month.

UFC president Dana White revealed the lineups for the four fight cards taking place on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi on Thursday. It all begins with UFC 251 on July 11, featuring three world title fights.

In the main event, Kamaru Usman defends his welterweight title against Gilbert Burns. In the co-main event, Alexander Volkanovski defends the his featherweight strap against former champion Max Holloway, and for the vacant bantamweight title, Petr Yan faces Jose Aldo.

Rounding out the main card will be a rematch between Jessica Andrade and Rose Namajunas, as well as Amanda Ribas taking on Paige VanZant.

The preliminary cards will simulcast on ESPN and ESPN+ before heading to ESPN+ pay-per-view for the main card.

Four days later, the UFC is back with an event on July 15 headlined by a featherweight bout between Calvin Kattar and Dan Ige. In the bantamweight co-main event, Frankie Edgar makes his 135-pound debut when he meets Pedro Munhoz.

Also on the main card is a pivotal strawweight fight between Carla Esparza and Marina Rodriguez, Abdul Razak Alhassan takes on Mounir Lazzez in a welterweight matchup, and Jared Gordon takes on Chris Fishgold in a featherweight fight.

A fourth title fight was made official for the promotion’s event on July 18 as Deiveson Figuredo and Joseph Benavidez will rematch for the vacant flyweight championship in the main event. In their first meeting, Figuredo finished Benavidez in the second round but the belt remained vacant following a weight miss from the eventual victor.

The middleweight division will be on display in the co-main event as Jack Hermansson takes on Kelvin Gastelum. Comprising the rest of the main card will be a lightweight bout between Marc Diakiesi and Rafael Fiziev, Ariane Lipski takes on Luana Carolina in the women’s flyweight division, along with a top-10 pairing in at 125-pounds between Alexandre Pantoja and Askar Askarov.

The “Fight Island” schedule rounds out on July 25 headlined by a big fight in the middleweight division as former champion Robert Whittaker takes on Darren Till. In the co-headliner, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira meet for the third time.

Also on the main card will be a lightweight bout between Alex Oliveira and Peter Sobotta, Alexander Gustaffson ends his retirement and makes his UFC heavyweight debut against Fabricio Werdum, as well as Danny Roberts facing Nicolas Dalby in the welterweight division.

Start times for the Yas Island finale were not revealed.

See the full UFC 251 fight card below:

Main Card (10 p.m. ET, ESPN+ pay-per-view)

Preliminary Card (8 p.m. ET, ESPN/ESPN+)

Early Prelims (6 p.m. ET, ESPN/ESPN+)

See the full lineup for July 15 below:

Main Card (10 p.m. ET, ESPN+)

  • Calvin Kattar vs. Dan Ige
  • Frankie Edgar vs. Pedro Munoz
  • Carla Esparza vs. Marina Rodriguez
  • Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Mounir Lazzez
  • Jared Gordon vs. Chris Fishgold

Preliminary Card (7 p.m. EST, ESPN+)

See the July 18 fight card below:

Main Card (9 p.m. ET, ESPN+)

Preliminary Card (6 p.m. ET, ESPN+)

See the July 25 lineup below:

Main Card

Preliminary Card

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