LAS VEGAS – The UFC is capping its year with something of a celebration of the hardcore fan, a reward for those who have been following the sport of MMA for a long time.
Charles Oliveira defends his UFC lightweight title against Dustin Poirier in the main event of UFC 269 on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena. It’s not only a title fight between two of the top fighters in the world, it’s also a battle between two of the most tenured fighters in the promotion that have had long journeys to the elite.
Oliveira won the belt with a second-round TKO win over Michael Chandler at UFC 262 in May. That was Oliveira’s 28th UFC fight — the longest journey for any fighter to a UFC title in history. If Poirier wins Saturday, he’ll become champion in his 27th UFC fight, the second longest road ever. ESPN ranks Poirier No. 5 and Oliveira No. 6 in the world on its pound-for-pound MMA list. At lightweight, ESPN has Poirier at No. 1 and Oliveira at No. 2.
Oliveira (31-8, 1 NC) has won nine in a row. The Brazil native has the most finishes (17) and most submission wins (14) in UFC history. Oliveira, 32, has a 19-8 (1 NC) record in the UFC going back to his debut in 2010.
Poirier (28-6, 1 NC), a former UFC interim lightweight champ, has stopped Conor McGregor twice this year. Poirier, a Louisiana native fighting out of Florida, has won three straight and has just one loss in his last 10 fights, to…
Source : espn
