Your Weekend in Combat Sports

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As always, programming is listed in EST
Live fights are in BOLD.
Premiere programming is in ITALICS.
MMA programming is in ORANGE.
Boxing programming is in RED.
Kickboxing/Muay Thai/Karate programming is in BLUE.
Wrestling/Jiu Jitsu/Grappling programming is in PURPLE.
Misc./Combination combat sports programming is in GREEN.

 

Friday January 24

4:30am: 2020 IBJJF European Jiu-Jitsu Championships (FloGrappling)
10:00am: 2020 Midwest Duals (FloWrestling)
5:00pm: Max on Boxing (ESPN2)
5:30pm: UFC Live: Fight Night Raleigh (ESPN2)
6:00pm: 2020 JitzKing Miami (FloGrappling)
6:00pm: Clarion vs. Michigan State (FloWrestling)
7:00pm: North Carolina vs. Virginia Tech (ACC Network)
7:00pm: Virginia vs. NC State (ACC Network)
7:00pm: Cleveland State vs. SIU-Edwardsville (ESPN+)
7:00pm: Nebraska vs. Penn State (BigTen)
7:00pm: Classic Entertainment & Sports MMA 60 (UFC Fight Pass)
7:00pm: Old Dominion vs. Edinboro (FloWrestling)
7:00pm: Purdue vs. Maryland (FloWrestling)
7:00pm: Indiana vs. Rutgers (FloWrestling)
8:00pm: Michigan vs. Northwestern (FloWrestling)
8:00pm: Oklahoma vs. North Dakota State (FloWrestling)
9:00pm: Iowa vs. Ohio State (BigTen)
9:00pm: Cal State Bakersfield vs. Wyoming (FloWrestling)
9:00pm: Stanford vs. Utah Valley (FloWrestling)

 

Saturday January 18

2:40am: Yod Muay Thai Onesongchai 7 (FREE EliteBoxing.tv)
4:30am: 2020 IBJJF European Jiu-Jitsu Championships (FloGrappling)
10:00am: Pitt vs. Duke (ACC Network)
10:00am: 2020 Midwest Duals (FloWrestling)
10:00am: 2020 OKWA Novice State Championship (FloWrestling)
11:00am: 2020 Wild West Championships (FloWrestling)
12:00pm: North Carolina vs. Virginia Tech (ACC Network)
12:00pm: Presbyterian vs. Campbell (ESPN+)
1:00pm: Harvard vs. Cornell (ESPN+)
2:00pm: 2020 California State Duals (FloWrestling)
3:00pm: Northern Illinois vs. Missouri (ESPN3)
3:00pm: Oregon State vs. Campbell (ESPN+)
3:00pm: Bare Knuckle Boxing 20 ($14.99 Fite.tv)
4:00pm: Fury vs. Wilder II Press Conference (ESPNEWS)
5:00pm: UFC Fight Night Prelims (ESPN+)
5:30pm: Cleveland State vs. Missouri (ESPN3)
6:00pm: Brown vs. Cornell (ESPN+)
6:00pm: Cage Titans 47 (FloCombat)
6:00pm: Montreal Fight League 16 ($14.99 Fite.tv)
6:30pm: Emmanuel vs. Presbyterian Women’s (ESPN+)
7:00pm: Kent State vs. Buffalo (ESPN+)
7:00pm: George Mason vs. Rider (ESPN+)
7:00pm: NFC 123 (FloCombat)
7:00pm: Z Promotions: Fight Night 12 ($19.99 Fite.tv)
7:00pm: Stand Up Warriors 25 ($12.99 Fite.tv)
7:30pm: Bellator 238 Prelims (DAZN)
8:00pm: UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. dos Santos (ESPN+)
8:00pm: Oklahoma State vs. Northern Iowa (FloWrestling)
8:00pm: Walkout FC vs. Pyramid ($19.99 Fite.tv)
8:00pm: Premier MMA Championship 14 ($19.99 Fite.tv)
9:00pm: Danny Garcia vs. Ivan Redkach/Francisco Santana vs. Jarrett Hurd (Showtime)
10:00pm: Bellator 238 (DAZN)
11:00pm: UFC Fight Night Post-Fight Show (ESPN+)

 

Sunday January 19

4:30am: 2020 IBJJF European Jiu-Jitsu Championships (FloGrappling)
1:00pm: Purdue vs. Rutgers (FloWrestling)
2:00pm: Ohio vs. SIU-Edwardsville (ESPN+)
2:00pm: Edinboro vs. Pitt (ESPN3)
2:00pm: Michigan vs. Illinois (FloWrestling)
3:00pm: Indiana vs. Maryland (FloWrestling)
3:00pm: Oklahoma vs. South Dakota State (FloWrestling)
3:00pm: Michigan State vs. Nebraska (FloWrestling)
3:00pm: Oklahoma State vs. Iowa State (FloWrestling)
4:00pm: Cal State Bakersfield vs. Northern Colorado (FloWrestling)
4:00pm: Utah Valley vs. Wyoming (FloWrestling)
8:30pm: Ohio State vs. Minnesota (BigTen)
11:00pm: PBC Countdown: Plant vs. Feigenbutz (Fox Sports 1)

 

Top-10 Viewing Options: In a weekend with UFC, PBC, and IBJJF rolling out big cards, it’s Bellator who rules the roost this time.

 

Your Weekend in Combat Sports  1. Bellator 238: You can argue about it being a better card than the UFC’s, but it’s certainly more interesting.

Your Weekend in Combat Sports  2. UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. dos Santos: Rough comedown after last week’s offering.

Your Weekend in Combat Sports  3. Danny Garcia vs. Ivan Redkach/Francisco Santana vs. Jarrett Hurd: After the momentous upset of Julian Williams by Jeison Rosario, you have to think taht a win by Hurd puts him right on deck for another shot at his former world titles.

Your Weekend in Combat Sports  4. 2020 IBJJF European Jiu-Jitsu Championships: It’s not as stacked as other IBJJF tournaments, but there are still some of the best in the world going for golds.

Your Weekend in Combat Sports  5. 2020 JitzKing Miami: A 16-man tournament, a team-tournament, AND a bunch of superfights?!?! Oh, JitzKing, you know right where to scratch me where I itch.

Your Weekend in Combat Sports  6. Iowa vs. Ohio State: Definitely your best wrestling matchup of the weekend.

Your Weekend in Combat Sports  7. Classic Entertainment & Sports MMA 60: Three title fights round out this New England’s operation this weekend.

Your Weekend in Combat Sports  8. PBC Countdown: Plant vs. Feigenbutz: PLANT. FEIGENBUTZ. Ok, it’s not the sexiest fight ever, but 168 is one of the marquee divisions in boxing, and it needs fresh champions and challengers, and they have that, here.

Your Weekend in Combat Sports  9. Max on Boxing: I give Max some shit, but I’ll never take for granted, as a fight fan, how awesome it is that the 5pm-6pm block on Friday is boxing/MMA. Ever since I was a kid, that 5-6 was Pardon the Interruption and PTI. Even on Friday, even on ESPN2, it’s really cool.

Your Weekend in Combat Sports  10. Bare Knuckle Boxing 20: Isn’t it fucking nuts these days that there are multiple bare knuckle boxing promotions and we can’t even go a month without one?

 

4×5: Every week, UCS’s Luke Irwin will list his Top-5 bouts in each of the four major different combat sports that he’s looking forward to the most, regardless of any conventional criteria, merit, or logic.

 

KICKBOXING/MUAY THAI

5. Super Welterweight Bout: Daiki Matsushita (9-5-1) vs. Eito (2-0) [Krush 110]

4. Lightweight Bout: Hisaki Higashimoto (11-14) vs. Shinichiro Kawasaki (9-5) [Krush 110]

3. Lightweight Bout: Daiki Kaneko (1-2) vs. Yuzuki Satomi (12-8-1) [Krush 110]

2. Super Lightweight Bout: Hideaki Yamazaki (30-8-1) vs. Tsubasa Horii (5-2-3) [Krush 110]

1. Krush Lightweight Championship: Gonnapar Weerasakreck (c) (105-29-3) vs. Takumi Yokoyama (9-3) [Krush 110]

 

BOXING

5. Super Middleweight Bout: Caleb Truax (30-4-2) vs. David Basajjamivule (16-4-1)

4. WBA Continental Americas/IBF Intercontinental Junior Welterweight Championships: Batyrzhan Jukembayev (c) (17-0) vs. Maximiliano Ricardo Veron (12-3-1)

3. IBO World Junior Featherweight Championship: Stephen Fulton (c) (17-0) vs. Arnold Khegai (16-0-1) [PBC on Showtime]

2. Junior Middleweight Bout: Francisco Santana (25-7-1) vs. Jarrett Hurd (23-1) [PBC on Showtime]

1. Welterweight Bout: Danny Garcia (35-2) vs. Ivan Redkach (23-4-1) [PBC on Showtime]

 

MMA

5. Welterweight Bout: Michael Chiesa (16-4) vs. Rafael dos Anjos (29-12) [UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. dos Santos]

4. Featherweight Bout: Henry Corrales (17-4) vs. Juan Archuleta (23-2) [Bellator 238]

3. Heavyweight Bout: Curtis Blaydes (12-2) vs. Junior dos Santos (21-6) [UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. dos Santos]

2. Bellator Women’s Featherweight Championship: Julia Budd (c) (13-2) vs. Cristiane Justino (21-2) [Bellator 238]

1. Bellator Featherweight World Grand Prix Quarterfinals: Adam Borics (14-0) vs. Darrion Caldwell (14-3) [Bellator 238]

 

GRAPPLING/WRESTLING

5. 125lb Superfight: Jessica Aguilar vs. Mariuxi Llaguno [2020 JitzKing Miami]

4. 141lb Bout: #1 Luke Pletcher (OSU) vs. #3 Mitch McKee (MINN) [Minnesota vs. Ohio State]

3. 185lb Black Belt Superfight: Enrico Cocco vs. Richie Martinez [2020 JitzKing Miami]

2. Black Belt Heavyweight Division Tournament [2020 IBJJF European Jiu-Jitsu Championships]

1. 145lb 16-Man Tournament [2020 JitzKing Miami]

 

 

Bold, Yet Probably Fruitless Predictions: A man gathering up as much betting capital as possible to bet it all on the Super Bowl coin flips is here to make other sound betting strategies.

 

Best Fight of the Weekend: Adam Borics vs. Darrion Caldwell
Most Underrated Fight of the Weekend: Michael Chiesa vs. Rafael dos Anjos
If My Life Depended on One Pick: Danny Garcia over Ivan Redkach
Best Card Top-to-Bottom: Bellator 238
Upset of the Week: Emilee Gettys over Ava Knight
Most Disappointing Fight of the Weekend: Curtis Blaydes vs. Junior dos Santos

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