As time begins to tick away, we get closer and closer to one of the most highly anticipated fight cards of the year, UFC 299.
Some fight fans might even say that UFC 299 has potential to be even bigger than the monumental UFC 300. Top to bottom, the UFC 299 card is sprinkled with matchups that have us playing the what-if game. Between newcomers like MVP and grizzled former champions like Rafael Dos Anjos, the card features a plethora of talent.
One shocker to see on the card is the placement of the Curtis Blaydes vs. Jailton Almeida on the prelims. Two contenders like Blaydes and Almeida could easily be on any main card pay-per-view. Some fans might find it outrageous but when you think about it, you kind of want to give the UFC matchmakers a ton of praise as they are brilliant to cap off the prelims and get the hype and excitement flowing. Strategically, it was a smart move.
When you look deeper at the card, many fights (depending on the finish) could produce contenders.
Could We Witness a Boring UFC 299 Main Event?
The main event between Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera and Sean O’Malley has been criticized by former bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling. Sterling thinks that if Vera could stick to a certain game plan, the headliner could be boring.
“I’m saying this is Francis Ngannou-Derrick Lewis or Rose Namajunas-Carla Esparza 2,” Sterling said on his YouTube channel The Weekly Scraps. “I think if you’re ‘Chito,’ you fight this motherf*cker boring, bro. You can’t fight him aggressive and try to be exciting because he’s too good at what he does.”
That is the beauty of the sport of MMA. We can discuss the fight card and pick it apart with a tooth comb, but at the end of the day, MMA is so unpredictable. As fight fans, we knew what we signed up for in the emotional roller coaster that is mixed martial arts.
There is no denying that UFC 299 is an exciting fight card on paper, but what will make it devastating is witnessing fight fans criticize the event as a whole when we know there are bound to be memorable moments.
As fans, we can also agree that a fight card can be “boring”. With so many opportunities on the line and a grand stage like a UFC 299, it would be tough to take a KO loss. So we may witness some tentative fights on Saturday and that is okay, too.
Which fight from UFC 299 has your attention of being a show stealer? Don’t miss out on our coverage and live results from UFC 299 here at Combat Sports UK!
Featured Image Credit to SportsNet
