Staredowns! Adesanya Sizes Up ‘Killa Gorilla’

We are just 24 hours away from one of the biggest fight cards of the year as UFC 276 goes down tomorrow night (Sat., July 2, 2022) live on ESPN+ PPV from inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. It will be headlined by two exciting title fights.

In the main event, reigning UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya will defend his title against surging contender Jared Cannonier. This will be Adesanya’s fifth-straight defense of his 185-pound title while “Killa Gorilla” is taking his first shot at UFC gold. “Last Stylebender” has all of the advantages on paper, but Cannonier is a heavy puncher that can put the champion in trouble at any moment.

Adesanya and Cannonier came together for one final staredown ahead of their UFC 276 showdown:

The co-main event will feature the long-awaited trilogy fight between current UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski and former titleholder Max Holloway. While Volkanovski has won the first two meetings both fights were incredibly close and could have even been awarded to Holloway. This trilogy fight will be important for both fighter’s legacy in the sport, especially Holloway who was on his way to becoming the greatest featherweight of all time before Volkanovski came along.

Check out their trilogy faceoff below:

Adding to the mix will be a middleweight clash between streaking veteran Sean Strickland and former GLORY middleweight and light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira, who holds a knockout win over Adesanya from back in 2017. The winner of this 185-pound clash should have the inside track to fight for the title next, but they’ll have to put on a show to get it.

Check out Strickland’s final faceoff with “Poatan” below:

Lastly, rising UFC star Sean O’Malley will finally meet his first top 10 opponent when he opens the UFC 276 PPV main card against Pedro Munhoz. O’Malley has turned in a 7-1 record since his UFC debut back in 2017, but “Sugar” has yet to defeat any top names. This weekend will be his chance to do so against a durable veteran in Munhoz, who will be looking to end a two-fight losing skid.

O’Malley’s final staredown with “Young Punisher” can be seen below:

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 276 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard balance on ABC/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 276: “Adesanya vs. Cannonier” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.