Las Vegas – UFC® returns to Las Vegas with a can’t miss welterweight thriller that will see undefeated No. 3 ranked contender Khamzat Chimaev battle perennial fan favorite Nate Diaz.
UFC® 279: CHIMAEV vs. DIAZ takes place at T-Mobile Arena on Saturday, Sept. 10, with the main card at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT on ESPN+ PPV. The prelims will be seen on ESPNEWS, ESPN Deportes and ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT with the night’s action starting at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT with Early Prelims on ESPN+ (English and Spanish) and UFC Fight Pass.
UFC® 279: CHIMAEV vs. DIAZ tickets will go on sale Friday, July 29 at 10 a.m. PT and are available for purchase at axs.com. Ticket sales are limited to eight (8) per person. UFC Fight Club® members will have the opportunity to purchase tickets Wednesday, July 27 at 10 a.m. PT via the website www.ufcfightclub.com. A special Internet ticket pre-sale will be available to UFC newsletter subscribers Thursday, July 28 starting at 10 a.m. PT. To access this presale, users must register for the UFC newsletter through UFC.com.
Fast-rising star Chimaev (11-0, fighting out of Stockholm, Sweden by way of Chechnya, Russia) has wasted no time turning heads since joining the UFC roster in 2020. A talented striker and grappler, he has delivered memorable victories against Gilbert Burns, Li Jingliang and Gerald Meerschaert. Chimaev now looks to steal the show in his first main event opportunity by stopping a UFC superstar in emphatic fashion.
Diaz (21-13, fighting out of Stockton, Calif.) has long proven himself to be among the most popular and skilled athletes in MMA. Throughout his career, The Ultimate Fighter season five winner has earned epic wins over Conor McGregor, Anthony Pettis and Jim Miller. Diaz now intends to hand Chimaev his first professional loss by delivering another vintage performance.
Additional bouts on the card include:
- Denis Tiuliulin (10-6, fighting out of Moscow, Russia) goes for his first UFC win when he meets Jamie Pickett (13-7, fighting out of Wilmington, N.C.) at middleweight
- No. 13 ranked light heavyweight contender Johnny Walker (18-7, fighting out of Dublin, Ireland by way of Rio das Ostras, Brazil) squares off with Ion Cutelaba (16-6-1 1NC, fighting out of Chisinau, Republic of Moldova)
- Jake Collier (13-7, fighting out of Cuba, Mo.) locks horns with Chris Barnett (22-8, fighting out of Athens, Ga.) in an intriguing heavyweight matchup
- Dana White’s Contender Series signee Chad Anheliger (12-5, fighting out of Calgary, Alberta, Canada) aims to keep his momentum going when he meets Alatengheili (15-8-2, fighting out of Beijing, China) at bantamweight
- No. 13 ranked heavyweight contender Shamil Abdurakhimov (20-7, fighting out of Dagestan, Russia) takes on surging prospect Jailton Almeida (16-2, fighting out of Salvador, Bahia, Brazil)
- Undefeated Melissa Martinez (7-0, fighting out of Mexico City, Mexico) makes her UFC debut against Elise Reed (5-2, fighting out of Princeton, N.J.) in a strawweight clash
- Norma Dumont (7-2, fighting out of Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil) faces Dana White’s Contender Series contract winner and three-time U.S. national amateur boxing champion Danyelle Wolf (1-0, fighting out of San Diego, Calif.) at featherweight
- No. 4 ranked contender Irene Aldana (13-6, fighting out of Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico) faces No. 11 Macy Chiasson (9-2, fighting out of Dallas, Texas by way of New Orleans, La.) in a pivotal women’s bantamweight bout
For the latest information on additional bouts for this event, please visit www.ufc.com. All bouts live and subject to change.
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About UFC®
UFC® is the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization (MMA), with more than 688 million fans and 207 million social media followers. The organization produces more than 40 live events annually in some of the most prestigious arenas around the world, while broadcasting to nearly 900 million TV households across more than 170 countries. UFC’s athlete roster features the world’s best MMA athletes representing more than 75 countries. The organization’s digital offerings include UFC FIGHT PASS®, one of the world’s leading streaming services for combat sports. UFC is owned by global entertainment, sports and content company Endeavor, and is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram and TikTok: @UFC.
About T-Mobile Arena
T-Mobile Arena, the 20,000-seat venue located on the Las Vegas Strip between Park MGM and New York-New York, opened April 6, 2016. The arena hosts more than 100 events annually including major headline entertainment, awards shows, UFC, boxing, basketball and other sporting events, family shows and special events. T-Mobile Arena also is the home of the Vegas Golden Knights, a National Hockey League expansion team and the city’s first professional sports team, as well as UFC’s exclusive Las Vegas arena destination. The venue, named the No. 1 venue on Billboard Magazine’s 2018 Arena Power List as well as the “Best New Major Concert Venue” by Pollstar Magazine in 2016, features 50 luxury suites, more than two dozen private loge boxes, complete broadcast facilities, and other specially designed exclusive hospitality offerings and fan amenities destined to create a guest experience second to none. Toshiba Plaza, an adjacent two-acre outdoor entertainment space, features performance stages, a variety of video screens and other interactive content and display areas. Industry-leading architect Populous designed T-Mobile Arena to meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s standards for LEED® Gold Certification. T-Mobile Arena is a privately funded joint venture between AEG and MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM). For more information, visit T-MobileArena.com or follow on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
About ESPN+
ESPN+ is the industry-leading sports streaming service that offers fans in the U.S. thousands of live sports events, original programming not available on ESPN’s linear TV or digital networks and exclusive editorial content from dozens of ESPN writers and reporters. Launched in April 2018, ESPN+ has grown to more than 22.3 million subscribers.
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Fans sign up to ESPN+ for just $6.99 a month (or $69.99 per year) at ESPN.com, ESPNplus.com or on the ESPN App (mobile and connected devices). It is also available as part of The Disney Bundle that gives subscribers access to Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu for $13.99/month (Hulu w/ads) or $19.99/month (Hulu w/o ads). Subscribers to Hulu + Live TV also receive ESPN+ at no additional cost.
About ESPN
ESPN, the world’s leading sports entertainment brand, features eight U.S. television networks, direct-to-consumer ESPN+, ESPN Radio, ESPN.com, endeavors on every continent around the world, and more. ESPN is 80 percent owned by ABC, Inc. (an indirect subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company) and 20 percent by Hearst.