The development of the UFC 222 fight card has been tumultuous, to say the least, but the card will go off Saturday night with Cris “Cyborg” Justino taking on Yana Kunitskaya for the UFC women’s featherweight championship serving as the main event at T-Moble Arena in Las Vegas.
While Cyborg’s brand of violence is at least an awe-inspiring display, it isn’t what the main event was supposed to be.
A featherweight title fight between Max Holloway and Frankie Edgar was scrapped because of an injury to the division’s champion, but Edgar will still fight on the card. He takes on rising featherweight Brian Ortega.
It isn’t a star-studded card, but there are some interesting scraps.
Here’s a look at all the matchups and some of the interesting storylines to keep an eye on.
Main Card (PPV at 10 p.m. ET)
- Cris Cyborg (-1400) vs. Yana Kunitskaya (+750)—women’s featherweight championship
- Frankie Edgar (-160) vs. Brian Ortega (+130)—featherweight
- Sean O’Malley (-135) vs. Andre Soukhamthath (+105)—bantamweight
- Andrei Arlovski (+160) vs. Stefan Struve (-200)—heavyweight
- Ketlen Vieira (-225) vs. Cat Zingano (+175)—women’s bantamweight
Prelims (Fox Sports 1 at 8 p.m. ET)
- Mackenzie Dern (-450) vs. Ashley Yoder (+325)—women’s strawweight
- Beneil Dariush (-400) vs. Alexander Hernandez (+300)—lightweight
- John Dodson (-155) vs. Pedro Munhoz (+125)—bantamweight
- CB Dollaway (-115) vs. Hector Lombard (-115)—middleweight
Prelims (Fight Pass at 6:30 p.m. ET)
- Zak Ottow (-340) vs. Mike Pyle (+260)—welterweight
- Bryan Caraway (-110) vs. Cody Stamann (-120)—bantamweight
- Jordan Johnson (-260) vs. Adam Milstead (+200)—light heavyweight
Odds via OddsShark
Who Is the No. 1 Featherweight Contender?
The name on the marquee might be Cyborg, but the real main event is Edgar vs. Ortega.
It’s a bout that combines two evenly matched opponents and real stakes on a card that doesn’t have any other fights that can say that. The winner of this fight is the clear-cut No. 1 contender for Holloway when he comes back from injury, barring a surprising return to the division from Conor McGregor.
Edgar is the consummate contender. He’s a former lightweight champion and has long ruled as one of the top featherweights now with a 7-2 record in the division. With both of those losses coming against Jose Aldo, there’s a reason he was supposed to be fighting for a title in this event.
Standing across from him is Ortega, whose stock has been rapidly rising. He doesn’t have the name recognition of Edgar, but he’s in a position to use this opportunity to become a high-profile fighter in the division.
His perfect record is underscored by a strong submission game, and he’ll be looking to execute a game plan that allows him to show that off.
With a member of the old guard set to take on a young and exciting name in the division, this will be a great test to see who deserves the next title shot in the division.
Prediction: Ortega via third-round submission
Is Sean O’Malley a Star in the Making?
The UFC is in need of stars, and Sean O’Malley just might fit the bill. The 23-year-old has an exciting style, a unique look and the record to warrant some attention.
UFC President Dana White has already taken a strong interest in marketing him:
As the highlights suggest, O’Malley is a creative and dynamic striker. As long as he’s able to step up in competition, the UFC could have a marketable fighter on the come up.
The only problem is we’ve seen this story before. All too often, the “next big thing” ends up taking an early loss when exposed to the wrong opponent too early.
Looking at the opening Vegas odds on the fight, there’s a chance that happens here. Andre Soukhamthath actually opened as the slight betting favorite (-159) and matches up well as a counter-striker to O’Malley’s ultra-aggressive style.
If O’Malley is able to get the better of The Asian Sensation in the exchanges and finish with a highlight-reel knockout, the hype train will have officially left the station.
If Soukhamthath is able to counter him at every turn and hand him a loss, he’ll just be the next overhyped pet project for the organization.
Prediction: O’Malley via second-round TKO
Is Stefan Struve or Andrei Arlovski Still Relevant?
It’s hard to tell how we should feel about this fight.
Sad because these are two fighters who shouldn’t be in the top 15 of a division?
Excited because it’s a fight between two top-15 fighters in a division?
Intrigued because the 7-foot Stefan Struve remains one of the most confusing fighters of all time?
The heavyweight division has long been one stuck in the past in terms of the contenders, but there is movement. Stipe Miocic has established himself as the champion, Francis Ngannou and Curtis Blaydes have emerged as new contenders and names like Alexander Volkov and Marcin Tybura are on the fringe of the top 10.
So where does that leave a fighter like Andrei Arlovski, who is now 39?
“I’m still here, and that shows that I’m professional about what I’m doing,” he said, per Daniel Austin of the Calgary Sun. “I love to train, I love to fight, I have great people around me. For heavyweights, prime time is 35-plus, you look at George Foreman or Randy Couture.”
The Belarusian is 1-5 in his last six fights. Struve is coming off a loss to Volkov.
The winner of this can cling to some relevancy, but the loser is going to have an uphill climb to gain any momentum.
Prediction: Struve via decision
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