UFC 282 will close out the company’s year on pay-per-view with a card of real quality. It has been a troubled road to get here. Jan Blachowicz will face Magomed Ankalaev in the main event for the vacant UFC light heavyweight championship. Originally, the card would have featured previous champion Jiri Prochazka taking on Glover Teixeira. However, the Czech fighter had to vacate his title after undergoing shoulder surgery. Ankalaev was next in line for a shot, but Teixeira refused that fight. Therefore, Blachowicz will receive a chance to regain the title he lost in 2021.
Beyond the main event, there is plenty of British interest in this Las Vegas fight extravaganza. The co-main event will see the return of the outgoing Paddy ‘The Baddy’ Pimblett. It has been quite the rise for the box office Liverpudlian. Just three fights deep into his UFC career, the charismatic Scouser has thrown off the shackles of the prelims to become a featured attraction in the company.
Pimblett remains outside of the UFC lightweight rankings as it stands. But a win over Jared Gordon would see him edge closer to the world standings. The American is coming off a win over Leonardo Santos last time out and has four victories in his last five outings. Pimblett has dispatched his three UFC foes in four combined rounds, picking up Performance of the Night bonuses for all of his victories so far. Whatever happens in Vegas, it is bound to be exciting.
While Pimblett is a Brit on the rise, fellow Liverpudlian Darren Till feels like he could be on the slide. Unbeaten in his first six UFC outings, ‘The Gorilla’ earned a shot at the UFC welterweight crown in 2018. Since that two-round submission loss to Tyron Woodley, his record reads 1-3. Till has lost two on the spin, dropping a decision to Robert Whittaker in 2020 and submitting to Derek Brunson in 2021.
Still only 29, there is a way back for Till. Standing at the junction of his road to redemption is Dricus Du Plessis. Unbeaten in four years, with two knockouts in his first three UFC fights, ‘Stillknocks’ is one of the last fighters you’d want to face on a cold streak. The stakes are high, with ninth-ranked Till meeting the world number 13. Will this be a case of a hot new star leapfrogging a flagging veteran? Or does Till have one last dance in him? On Saturday night, we’ll have our answer.
The rest of the main card features a battle between unbeaten featherweights and a potentially-explosive catchweight contest. The latter sees world-ranked pair Bryce Mitchell and Ilia Topuria clash. Mitchell boasts a 15-0 record and looks like a star on the rise. Topuria comes into the fight at 12-0 and will be returning to the weight after making his lightweight debut last time out. Meanwhile, at an 180lb catchweight, Alex Morono looks to extend his winning streak to five against ‘Argentine Dagger’ Santiago Ponzinibbio.
Even the main fight on the extensive prelims is worthy of a place on most pay-per-views. World-ranked heavies will do battle as Jairzinho Rozenstruik looks to return to winning ways against Chris Daukaus. There’s entertainment everywhere you look on this show, which looks set to end UFC’s pay-per-view year with a bang.
Here’s how you can watch the show:
When: Saturday 10th December (3am Sunday UK Time)
Where: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
Channel: BT Sport 1HD
Full Card:
Jan Blachowicz vs Magomed Ankalaev
Paddy Pimblett vs Jared Gordon
Darren Till vs Dricus du Plessis
Bryce Mitchell vs Ilia Topuria
Prelims
Jairzinho Rozenstruik vs Chris Daukaus
Raul Rosas Jr vs Jay Perrin
Edemen Shahbazyan vs Dalcha Lungiambula
Chris Curtis vs Joaquin Buckley
UFC Fight Pass Prelims
Billy Quarantillo vs Alexander Hernandez
T.J. Brown vs Erik Silva
Vinicius Salvador vs Daniel da Silva
Cameron Saaiman vs Steven Koslow
*18+ | BeGambleAware | Odds Subject To Change
