Blockbuster Welterweight Bout Between Conor Mcgregor and Cowboy Cerrone Headlines Ufc® 246 in Las Vegas
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BLOCKBUSTER WELTERWEIGHT BOUT BETWEEN CONOR MCGREGOR AND COWBOY CERRONE HEADLINES UFC® 246 IN LAS VEGAS Las Vegas – UFC® will kick off 2020 with a thrilling bout featuring former lightweight and featherweight champion Conor McGregor and perennial fan favorite Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone. Plus, former UFC lightweight champion and No. 11 ranked contender Anthony Pettis will return to 155 pounds against surging Diego Ferreira. UFC® 246: MCGREGOR vs. COWBOY will take place Saturday, Jan. 18 at T-Mobile Arena and will stream live nationally on Pay-Per- View, exclusively through ESPN+ in the U.S. at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT in both English and Spanish. ESPN+ is the exclusive provider of all UFC Pay-Per-View events to fans in the U.S. as part of an agreement that continues through 2025. As UFC® 246: MCGREGOR vs. COWBOY approaches, fans will be able to purchase itonline at ESPNPlus.com/PPV or on the ESPN App on mobile and connected-TV devices. ESPN+ is available as an integrated part of the ESPN App on all major mobile and connected-TV devices and platforms, including Amazon Fire, Apple, Android, Chromecast, PS4, Roku, Samsung Smart TVs, X Box One and more. Preliminary fights will air nationally in English on ESPN and on ESPN Deportes (in Spanish) starting at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT with the early prelims simulcast on UFC Fight Pass and ESPN+ at 6:15 p.m. ET/3:15 p.m. PT. Arguably the biggest star in mixed martial arts history, McGregor (21-4, fighting out of Dublin, Ireland) became the first fighter in UFC history to simultaneously hold championships in two divisions. Throughout his legendary career, he has earned spectacular victories over Eddie Alvarez, Nate Diaz, Jose Aldo, Chad Mendes and Dustin Poirier. McGregor now aims to take out another legend and prove he is still among the pound-for-pound best fighters on the planet. The record holder for most wins and finishes in UFC history, Cerrone (36-13 1NC, fighting out of Albuquerque, N.M.) is no stranger to delivering iconic MMA moments. During his storied run, he has netted incredible finishes against Mike Perry, Matt Brown, Rick Story, Edson Barboza and Charles Oliveira. Cerrone now looks to continue building his legacy by securing another highlight-reel knockout in the biggest fight of his career. A former UFC and WEC champion, Pettis (22-9, fighting out of Milwaukee, Wisc.) returns to lightweight after an exciting run at 170 pounds. Among the most dynamic finishers in MMA, he has earned sensational stoppage victories over Stephen Thompson, Gilbert Melendez, Benson Henderson and Charles Oliveira. He now has his sights set on another big win against one of the division’s toughest budding contenders. A lightweight division mainstay since 2014, Ferreira (16-2, fighting out of Pharr, Texas by way of Terra Nova, Brazil) is currently riding a tremendous five-fight win streak. During this run, the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt has secured impressive victories against Mairbek Taisumov, Rustam Khabilov, Jared Gordon and Olivier Aubin-Mercier. Ferreira now hopes to add a former champion to his resume and crack the 155-pound top 15. Additional bouts on the card include: No. 6 ranked women’s strawweight contenderClaudia Gadelha (17-4, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) looks to continue building her momentum against rising No. 11 Alexa Grasso (11-3, fighting out of Guadalajara, Mexico) Former women’s bantamweight champion and No. 3 ranked contender Holly Holm (12-5, fighting out of Albuquerque, N.M.) takes on No. 6 Raquel Pennington (10-8, fighting out of Colorado Springs, Colo.) in a highly anticipated rematch Andre Fili (20-6, fighting out of Sacramento, Calif.) meets Sodiq Yusuff (10-1, fighting out of Bladensburg, Md. by way of Lagos, Nigeria) in an exciting battle of featherweight prospects In a pivotal clash of women’s flyweight contenders, No. 7 ranked Roxanne Modafferi (23-17, fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev.) faces undefeated No. 9 Maycee Barber (7-0, fighting out of Milwaukee, Wisc.) Talented lightweights collide when Drew Dober (21-9 1NC, fighting out of Denver, Colo.) squares off with Nasrat Haqparast (11-2, fighting out of Hamburg, Germany) In a clash of heavyweight contenders, No. 12 ranked heavyweight contender Aleksei Oleinik (57-13-1, fighting out of Moscow, Russia) locks horns withMaurice Greene (8-4, fighting out of St Cloud, Minn.) Dana White’s Contender Series signee Aleksa Camur (5-0, fighting out of Broadview Heights, Ohio) debuts against Justin Ledet (9-2 1NC, fighting out of Rosharon, Texas) Chas Skelly (18-4, fighting out of Arlington, Texas) faces Dana White’s Contender Series veteran Grant Dawson (14-1, fighting out of Lee’s Summit, Mo.) in a featherweight bout Sabina Mazo (7-1, fighting out of Huntington Beach, Calif. by way of Medellin, Colombia) squares off with JJ Aldrich (8-3, fighting out of Westminster, Colo.) No. 7 ranked flyweight contender Tim Elliott (16-9-1, fighting out of Lee’s Summit, Mo.) takes on unbeaten No. 12 Askar Askarov (10-0-1, fighting out of Khasavyurt, Dagestan, Russia) Brian Kelleher (19-10, fighting out of Selden, N.Y.) meets newcomer Ode Osbourne (7-2 1NC, fighting out of Milwaukee, Wisc.) For the latest information on additional bouts for this event, please visit www.ufc.com. All bouts live and subject to change. Visit UFC.com for information and content to support your UFC coverage. Please click here to apply for the event. Tickets for UFC® 246: MCGREGOR vs. COWBOY go on sale Friday, Dec. 20 at 10 a.m. PT. Tickets are available for purchase online at www.axs.com. Ticket sales are limited to eight (8) per person. UFC Fight Club® members will have the opportunity to purchase tickets Wednesday, Dec. 18 at 10 a.m. PT via the website www.ufcfightclub.com. A special Internet ticket pre- sale will be available to UFC newsletter subscribers Thursday, Dec. 19 starting at 10 a.m. PT. To access this presale, users must register for the UFC newsletter through UFC.com. ### About UFC® UFC® is the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization (MMA), with more than 300 million fans and 75 million social media followers. The organization produces more than 40 live events annually in some of the most prestigious arenas around the world, while broadcasting to nearly one billion TV households across more than 170 countries. UFC’s athlete roster features the world’s best MMA athletes representing more than 65 countries. The organization’s digital offerings include UFC FIGHT PASS®, one of the world’s leading streaming services for combat sports. UFC was acquired in 2016 by global entertainment, sports and content company Endeavor, along with strategic investors Silver Lake Partners and KKR. UFC is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC, Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram: @UFC. About T-Mobile Arena T-Mobile Arena, the 20,000-seat venue located on the Las Vegas Strip between Park MGM and New York-New York, opened April 6, 2016. The arena hosts more than 100 events annually including major headline entertainment, awards shows, UFC, boxing, basketball and other sporting events, family shows and special events. T-Mobile Arena also is the home of the Vegas Golden Knights, a National Hockey League expansion team and the city’s first professional sports team. The city’s newest landmark, recently named the No. 1 venue onBillboard Magazine’s 2018 Arena Power List as well as the “Best New Major Concert Venue” by Pollstar Magazine, features 50 luxury suites, more than two dozen private loge boxes, complete broadcast facilities, and other specially designed exclusive hospitality offerings and fan amenities destined to create a guest experience second to none. 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Programming on ESPN+ includes exclusive UFC and Top Rank boxing events, thousands of college sports events (including football and basketball) from more than a dozen sports at 20 conferences, hundreds of MLB and NHL games, top domestic and international soccer (Serie A, MLS, FA Cup, Bundesliga – beginning in 2020, EFL Championship and Carabao Cup, Eredivisie), Grand Slam tennis, international and domestic rugby and cricket, exclusive ESPN+ Original series, acclaimed studio shows and the full library of ESPN’s award-winning 30 for 30 films. Fans subscribe to ESPN+ for just $4.99 a month (or $49.99 per year) through the ESPN App, (on mobile and connected devices), ESPN.com or ESPNplus.com. It is also available as part of a bundle offer that gives subscribers access to Disney+, Hulu (ad-supported), and ESPN+ ¬— all for just $12.99/month. About ESPN ESPN, the world’s leading sports entertainment enterprise features more than 50 assets – nine U.S.