Diaz began his UFC career in 2007 on “The Ultimate Fighter” and has compiled a professional MMA record of 20-13 with 11 of those wins coming by submission. His biggest victory to date was a narrow 2016 victory over Conor McGregor, who went on to win back-to-back featherweight and then lightweight championship belts. The choke of the UFC’s first two-time champion propelled the fighter from Stockton, California to fame. He lost the rematch to McGregor later that year, and a trilogy fight has since been talked about, but failed to materialize. Since her majority decision loss to McGregor, Diaz has fought just three times: a win over Anthony Pettis and a TKO loss to Jorge Masvidal in 2019, then a unanimous decision loss to Leon Edwards in June 2021. [UFC 279 prelim result: Chris Barnett’s epic comeback, in-cage interview delights fans] Ferguson, who first fought for the UFC in 2011, was scheduled to face Li Jingliang on Saturday in his first fight since a devastating knockout loss to Michael Chandler in May. But after Khamzat Chimaev weighed in 7.5 pounds heavy for his scheduled fight against Diaz at the top of the card, Ferguson was offered the main event against Diaz and accepted. Although Ferguson is riding a four-fight losing streak, the losses came to Justin Gage, Charles Oliveira, Beneil Darius and Chandler – all bona fide studs in the UFC’s stacked lightweight division. Before the losses began to pile up, Ferguson was riding an incredible 12-fight winning streak in which he captured the interim lightweight title, but never fought for the undisputed title. [It’s fantasy football season: Create or join a league now!] Chimaev’s weight problem cost him the spotlight in the main event against Diaz, but not a spot on the card as he now faces Kevin Holland in a catchweight fight in the co-main event. The two were involved in a fight backstage at Wednesday’s press conference, so the fight makes sense. The story continues Also on the main card, Jingliang will now fight Daniel Rodriguez, who was originally scheduled to face Holland. Irene Aldana and Macy Chiasson meet in a catchweight bout at 140 pounds, and light heavyweights Johnny Walker and Ion Cutelaba open the pay-per-view. Yahoo Sports’ Kevin Iole is cageside for the show at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, so follow the live tracker below for all the latest updates and analysis.
UFC 279 live scores, highlights, analysis
UFC 279 main card odds, results, highlights (Start time 10 p.m. ET, ESPN+ PPV)
All odds through BetMGM.
Welterweight: Nate Diaz +130 vs. Tony Ferguson -155 Catchweight (180 lbs): Khamzat Chimaev -600 vs. Kevin Holland +425 Catchweight (180 lbs): Li Jingliang +135 vs. Daniel Rodriguez -165 Catchweight (140 lbs): Irene Aldana -170 vs. Macy Chiasson +140 Light Heavyweight: Johnny Walker +170 vs. Ion Cuțelaba -210
UFC 279 preview odds, results, highlights (Live now on ESPNEWS/ESPN+)
Catchweight (149.5 lbs): Hakeem Dawodu -215 vs. Julian Erosa +175 Catchweight (220 lbs): Jailton Almeida -650 vs. Anton Turkalj +450 Middle: Denis Tiuliulin def. Jamie Pickett by TKO at 4:52 of R2 Catchweight (267.5 lbs): Chris Barnett def. Jake Collier by TKO at 2:24 of R2:
Full UFC 279 Early Qualifiers Results
Women’s Fringe: Norma Dumont -def. Danyelle Wolf by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26) Bantamweight: Alateng Heili def. Chad Anheliger by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) Women’s Straw: Elise Reed def. Melissa Martinez by unanimous decision (29-28, 28-28, 29-28) Welterweight: Yohan Lainesse def. Darian Weeks by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28) Nate Diaz will now fight Tony Ferguson at UFC 279 in the final fight of his UFC contract. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
