With the UFC Saudi Arabia early (and official) weigh ins already in the books, the promotion will send all 22 fighters back to the stage for the ceremonial festivities, popping off LIVE at 12 p.m. ET in the embedded video above. This marks the final stop before the “Whittaker vs. Aliskerov” MMA event on ABC, ESPN and ESPN+ tomorrow (Sat., June 22, 2024) at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Get complete UFC Saudi Arabia early weigh-in results right here.
Aliskerov replaces the ailing Khamzat Chimaev.
“This is what we do,” Aliskerov told MMA Junkie. “We’re fighters. This is our sport. This is our life. I even put it on my Instagram, ‘Anyone, anywhere, at any time.’ It’s the type of motto I live by and you have to live by it if you want to fight on the top level. I was ready for this. I don’t care if it was five rounds or 10 rounds, you have to be ready for anything being thrown your way and that’s what I live by.”
“I consider myself to be a tougher matchup because I am a top 10 fighter,” Aliskerov continued. “I deserve to be at least in the top 10. The way I was speaking to Ali, my manager, is the way it sounded is the UFC kind of expected me to have this fight. They think I’m ready, that I’m that level of an opponent that I should be accepting this fight. I think that’s great. It makes me think that the UFC values me. They know what I’m worth. They know what I’m capable of, so I think it’s right that I’m a tougher matchup.”
MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Saudi Arabia fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the ESPN/ESPN+ preliminary card matchups, which are scheduled to begin at 12 p.m. ET, followed by the remaining main card balance on ABC/ESPN+ at 3 p.m. ET.
To check out the latest and greatest UFC Saudi Arabia news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archives here, here, and here. For the updated and finalized “Whittaker vs. Aliskerov” fight card and ABC/ESPN+ lineup click here.