Five reasons to watch UFC 240, with a title fight and the return of Cris Cyborg

Holloway (left) faces Edgar (right). Photo: Montagem SL MMA Press

Ultimate arrives on Canadian soil this weekend for UFC 240, in the city of Edmonton. With a title fight in its main fight, the event brings the public 11 fights that promise to liven up the weekend for mixed martial arts fans.

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How to watch UFC 240 LIVE on television and internet

Holloway and Edgar make weight and confirm fight for the belt this Saturday

Video: Watch the UFC 240 weigh-in, with Max Holloway and Frankie Edgar, who fight for the featherweight title. LIVE!

In the main confrontation of the night, Frankie Edgar will try to put an end to the reign of Max Holloway, owner of the belt since he defeated the Brazilian José Aldo, in a fight valid for UFC 212, in 2017. This will be the third time that the Hawaiian will step into the Octagon with the intention of remaining number one in the featherweight division (up to 65,7kg.).

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Another awaited fight will be the return of the Curitiba native Chris Cyborg to the UFC battlefield. The fighter, who in December 2018, suffered a bitter and surprising defeat against her compatriot Amanda nunes, which resulted in him losing his featherweight title. Since then, the Brazilian has not performed for the organization.

In addition to Cyborg, four more athletes will represent the Tupiniquin lands in the frozen territory of Canada. The fighters will face off on the preliminary card of the event, which will start at 19:15 pm (Brasília time).

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To get you in the mood for UFC 240, we've prepared five reasons for you to watch the event.

1 – Max Holloway and the construction of his hegemony

M. Holloway sports the featherweight belt. Photo: Reproduction/Facebook @ufcbrasil

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Over the years, Max Holloway He has shown himself to be an extremely talented athlete, as well as charismatic. At 27 years old, the fighter has impressive boxing technique and knockout capabilities. Throughout his professional activity, the fighter has already had 23 fights, winning 20 and being defeated in only three situations.

One of the greatest moments in Max's career came in 2017, when the Hawaiian beat the Brazilian José Aldo, of whom the athlete publicly declares to be a fan. On that occasion, the 'People's Champion' struggled to withstand the hard blows delivered by Holloway and ended up being defeated by knockout. About six months later, Aldo got a new chance to regain his belt, but, once again, he succumbed to the young man's talent.

Recently, the featherweight champion tried to become another athlete to be part of the select group of those who hold two belts in different categories. Holloway moved up a category to face the North American Dustin poirier for the interim lightweight belt (up to 70,3kg.) in April this year, for UFC 236. Max, despite doing well, was defeated in a unanimous decision by the judges.

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This Saturday, back in his original category, the fighter will face another experienced athlete. Against Edgar, Max will face an opponent with characteristics different from those of Manauara. Frankie is world-renowned in the world of mixed martial arts for the quality of his wrestling, which will provide a different problem for Holloway to solve. If he emerges victorious, Max will continue his quest to become the greatest featherweight of all time.

2 – Frankie Edgar and his third shot at the featherweight title

F. Edgar (photo) tries, for the third time, to become featherweight champion. Photo: Reproduction / Instagram @frankieedgar.

the american Frankie Edgar At UFC 240, he will have his third chance to win his long-awaited featherweight title. The fighter, who was already champion of the top category (lightweight), between 2010 and 2012, has already entered the octagon as a challenger for athletes under 65,7kg. in two situations. Both occurred against the Brazilian José Aldo. On the first attempt, in 2013, Aldo and Edgar fought an electrifying five-round duel. At the end of the confrontation, the judges judged that the 'People's Champion' was more effective and deserved to keep his title.

The second attempt, also against Manauara, took place just over three years later. More experienced and well-rounded, the North American once again faced the Brazilian, but, once again, he ended up succumbing to the talent of Aldo, who, once again, won in a unanimous decision by the evaluators.

This time, at 37 years old, Frankie may have his last chance to win the featherweight belt. Against Holloway, Frankie will have to use all his talent in order to avoid his opponent's effective blows so that he can escape the attacks unharmed. The clash against Max will mark the North American's 31st in his career, which began in 2005, almost 15 years ago. Edgar, in his past commitments, has 23 wins, six defeats and one draw.

3 – Cyborg x UFC, last fight for the company?

Chris Cyborg can have his last fight for the UFC. Photo: UFC Disclosure

The Brazilian Chris Cyborg This Saturday, she will hold her first fight since being dethroned from her position as featherweight champion. The fighter was defeated in the fight against Amanda nunes, held in December last year and, since then, he had not performed again for the organization.

Without an immediate rematch, the fighter accepted the UFC's proposal to face former Invicta FC champion, Felícia Spencer. Always confident, the Curitiba native agreed to travel to Canada, Spencer's home country, to have her last fight before the end of her contract with Ultimate.

Cyborg will step into the octagon amid a controversy involving his name and that of UFC president, Dana White. Recently, the two parties have been exchanging barbs in the press regarding why Cris did not hold the rematch against Amanda. According to White, Cyborg was offered a new fight against the 'Lioness', which was promptly rejected by the athlete. Cris, in turn, denies the information released by the agent and states that, one day after the knockout suffered, he sent a message to Dana requesting that a new fight be scheduled.

The Brazilian, however, during this week, avoided commenting on the matter, claiming that her focus was only on Spencer and that, after the event, she will respond to all questions raised regarding the topic.

The fight against Felicia, in a way, can be seen as a farewell, or the beginning of a new story for Cyborg within the UFC.

4 – Tupiniquim Duel

A. Pantoja (left) faces D. Figueiredo (right) at UFC 2040, in July. Photo: Montagem SL / MMA Press

With the dream of fighting for the flyweight belt (up to 56,7kg) the Brazilians Alexandre pantoja e Deiveson Figueiredo face each other in the third fight of the preliminary card of UFC 240. In third and fourth place in the category (respectively), the fighters exchange forces in order to remain stable within the category, which has gone through a moment of extreme doubt about whether or not it will continue. .

Currently, the flyweight champion, Henry Cejudo, ventured into the bantamweight category (up to 65,7kg.) and won the division title, which was vacated by TJ. Dillashaw after the American was caught taking a doping test. On that occasion, the Olympic champion was declared the new holder of the belt after beating the Brazilian Marlon moraes No. UFC 238, which took place in June this year.

After winning, Cejudo was forced to undergo surgery on his shoulder and is only expected to return to the octagon in 2020. While the champion is unable to perform, the athletes in the category continue to face each other in search of the challenger position.

Pantoja is currently in a great phase within the UFC. The athlete has three consecutive victories and has 18 triumphs in his last 20 professional commitments. Deiveson, in turn, suffered his first career setback in the meeting with his compatriot Jussier formiga, which took place in March this year. In total, Figueiredo has fought on 16 occasions, winning 15 and losing one.

5 – More Brazilians on the card

S. Frota is selected to fight at UFC 240. Photo: Reproduction/ Instagram @atretaufc

With 11 fights scheduled, UFC 240 will bring, in addition to Cyborg and the duel between Pantoja Figueiredo, two more athletes scheduled to participate in the card.

Flyweight, Sarah Frota, will have her second fight since signing a professional contract with Ultimate. In her debut fight, the Brazilian was surprised by her compatriot Livinha Souza, in a fight held in February this year. The 32-year-old from Brasilia, this time, will exchange forces against the Canadian Gillian robertson, who is coming off a victory over Verônica Macedo, also in February.

Vivi Araújo is another Tupiniquim athlete arriving in Canada to have another fight for the UFC. After making his debut with the company on the right foot, UFC 237, in Rio de Janeiro, the athlete from Ceilândia (DF), this time, will face the experienced Alexis Davis, who is coming off two consecutive defeats and is going through a difficult time within Ultimate. The Brazilian, if she wins, will continue her journey in an attempt to reach the elite of the fly category, which today has Valentina Shevchenko as a great champion.