Cris Cyborg will defend her Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Featherweight title against former Bantamweight queenpin Holly Holm at the promotion’s year-end UFC 217 pay-per-view (PPV) event on Dec. 30, 2017, in Las Vegas, Nevada.
It will be Cyborg’s first title defense after winning the vacant strap at UFC 214 by beating down a game Tonya Evinger. For Holm, it’s a chance to become the promotion’s next multi-division champion after a short-lived reign at 135-pounds. However, the fight almost didn’t see the light of day, as the Holm camp stated it couldn’t come to financial terms with the world’s leading mixed martial arts (MMA) organization. After a few weeks, thankfully a deal was struck and now fight fans are set to enjoy a title fight between two of the best female strikers in MMA today.
Also on the card, Khabib Nurmagomedov continues his path to the Lightweight title when he takes on devastating striker Edson Barboza in the co-main event. For Barboza, it’s his own opportunity to stake his spot in the stacked 155-pound division by taking out the undefeated (24-0, 8-0 UFC) “Eagle.”
Before the combatants collide on fight night, take a look at their paths to the event with the UFC 219 extended video preview embedded above. And to see who else is participating at the year-end spectacle click here.
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