Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) recently held a special media day on Thursday for the upcoming UFC Fight Night 159 mixed martial arts (MMA) event on ESPN+, scheduled for this Sat. (Sept. 21, 2019) inside Arena Ciudad de Mexico in Mexico City.
Headlining the affair will be the featherweight slugfest between Yair Rodriguez and Jeremy Stephens, who came face-to-face at the conclusion of today’s festivities. I want to make a comment about those sunglasses, but I think it speaks for itself.
Rodriguez (11-2) has not competed since his thrilling, last-second knockout win over Chan Sung Jung at UFC Denver in late 2018. “Pantera” is 7-1 under the UFC banner with three knockouts, with his only loss coming to featherweight title contender, Frankie Edgar, roughly two years back.
As for Stephens (28-16), he’s mired in a two-fight losing streak after racking up three consecutive victories between 2017-18. Despite his inconsistency, “Lil’ Heathen” remains a dangerous striker with one-punch knockout power, having already stopped 19 opponents by way of strikes.
UFC Mexico City will also feature the strawweight showdown between ex-champion Carla Esparza and top contender Alexa Grasso. In addition, Brandon Moreno and Askar Askarov hook ‘em up for flyweight bragging rights.
For the complete UFC Mexico City fight card and line up click here.