Fight fans react to ‘horrifying’ UFC 288 PPV main card, Dana White responds

KANSAS CITY, MO — Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fans are not pleased with the new UFC 288 pay-per-view (PPV) main card.

During the UFC Kansas City broadcast last night (Sat., April 15, 2023), UFC announced the new, re-arranged UFC 288 main card, which had to be adjusted after Charles Oliveria vs. Beneil Dariush was pulled from the card because of a “Do Bronx” injury.

It is safe to say that UFC’s fanbase isn’t too pleased with the PPV. Check out some immediate reactions from social media:

While you can see that most of the fanbase is not happy with the card, a few unicorns out there are okay with it as-is:

The good news (maybe)?

UFC President, Dana White, addressed this issue at UFC Kansas City’s post-fight press conference (watch it here). He is clearly aware of situation — and collective frustration — and let everyone know that UFC 288 will probably get some help.

“We’re actually working on it tonight,” White said. “I just told Sean [Shelby] we’ll get together on Monday and button this up — we’ll get it done.

“[Gilbert Burns] has been blowing me up all day,” White said. “So, probably.”

UFC 288 takes place at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., on May 6, 2023. That would give Burns — fresh off a decision win over Jorge Masvidal in Miami, Fla., earlier this month — about a three-week turnaround.

The question now: Who would Burns fight?

UFC 288 PPV Main Card On ESPN+ (10 p.m. ET):

135 lbs.: UFC Bantamweight Champion Aljamain Sterling vs. Henry Cejudo
115 lbs.: Jessica Andrade vs. Xiaonan Yan
155 lbs.: Drew Dober vs. Matt Frevola
145 lbs.: Bryce Mitchell vs. Movsar Evloev
145 lbs.: Kron Gracie vs. Charles Jourdain

UFC 288 Prelims Card On ESPN/ESPN+ (8 p.m. ET):

135 lbs.: Johnny Munoz vs. Daniel Santos
115 lbs.: Virna Jandiroba vs. Marina Rodriguez
185 lbs.: Armen Petrosyan vs. TBA
205 lbs.: Devin Clark vs. Kennedy Nzechukwu

UFC 288 Early Prelims Card On ESPN+ (6 p.m. ET):

125 lbs.: Rafael Estevam vs. Zhalgas Zhumagulov
170 lbs.: Rolando Bedoya vs. Khaos Williams
185 lbs.: Joseph Holmes vs. Claudio Ribeiro
185 lbs.: Ikram Aliskerov vs. Phil Hawes

LIVE! Watch UFC 288 PPV On ESPN+ Here!

BLOCKBUSTER BANTAMWEIGHT BATTLE! Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns to Newark, N.J., for the first time in more than three years on Sat., May 6, 2023, with a blockbuster Bantamweight collision inside Prudential Center that will see Aljamain Sterling attempt another successful title defense against returning two-division titleholder and former gold medal-winning Olympic wrestler, Henry Cejudo. In UFC 288’s last-minute pay-per-view (PPV) co-main event, former Welterweight title challenger, Gilbert Burns, locks horns with No. 4-seeded contender, Belal Muhammad, in a five-round, 170-pound No. 1 contender eliminator match.

Don’t miss a single second of EPIC face-punching action!

• STREAM UFC 288

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 288 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard on ESPN/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 288: “Sterling vs. Cejudo” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.