In terms of guaranteed fireworks, you could do much worse than Edson Barboza (20-6 MMA, 14-6 UFC) vs. Justin Gaethje (19-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC).
Barboza checks in at No. 6 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie MMA lightweight rankings, while Gaethje is just behind at No. 9. But for MMA fans, the contest is less about what it means in terms of any title picture and more about what it represents in terms of expected chaos.
And with the two men possessing some of the nastiest leg kicks in the game, the poster probably could have just featured both men from the waist down.
But that would be weird, right?
Here’s what the UFC went with instead:
UFC on ESPN 2 takes place March 30 at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. The night’s main card airs on ESPN following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.
The night’s full lineup includes:
MAIN CARD (ESPN, 7 p.m. ET)
- Edson Barboza vs. Justin Gaethje
- David Branch vs. Jack Hermansson
- Josh Emmett vs. Michael Johnson
- Karolina Kowalkiewicz vs. Michelle Waterson
- Sheymon Moraes vs. Sodiq Yusuff
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN, 5 p.m. ET)
- Alexa Grasso vs. Marina Rodriguez
- Desmond Green vs. Ross Pearson
- Paul Craig vs. Kennedy Nzechukwu
- Ray Borg vs. Kyler Phillips
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 3:30 p.m. ET)
- Kevin Aguilar vs. Enrique Barzola
- Maryna Moroz vs. Sabina Mazo
- Mark De La Rosa vs. Alex Perez
- Kevin Holland vs. Gerald Meerschaert
For more on UFC on ESPN 2, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.
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