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 June 7
12:00am: PFL Post-Fight Show (ESPN+)
5:00pm: UFC 238 Pre-Fight Show (ESPN+)
6:00pm: Valdez vs. Sanchez Weigh-Ins (ESPN+)
8:00pm: Invicta Fighting Championship 35 (UFC Fight Pass)
8:00pm: Modern Fighting Championships: Boldt vs. Mohon ($14.99 Fite.tv)
8:00pm: Cletus Seldon vs. Zab Judah/David Papot vs. James McGirt ($14.99 Fite.tv)
8:30pm: Fight To Win 114 (FloGrappling)
10:00pm: Legacy Fighting Alliance 69 (AXS)
10:00pm: Friday Night Fights (UFC Fight Pass)
Saturday June 8
5:00am: Faith Keles vs. Liam Paro/Jacob Ng vs. Ricardo Lara ($14.95 Epicentre.tv)
10:00am: 2019 Final X: Rutgers (FloWrestling)
1:00pm: World Combat Fighting Championship: The Art of War ($7.99 Fite.tv)
2:00pm: Andoni Gago vs. Jesus Sanchez/Kerman Lejarraga vs. Luis Solis ($9.99 Fite.tv)
2:45pm: Enfusion 85 ($11.12 EnfusionLive.com)
3:00pm: Bare Knuckle Boxing 17 ($14.99 Fite.tv)
6:15pm: UFC 238 Prelims (ESPN+/UFC Fight Pass)
6:30pm: Top Rank on ESPN Prelims (ESPN+)
7:00pm: Golovkin vs. Rolls Prelims (DAZN)
8:00pm: UFC 238 Prelims (ESPN)
8:00pm: Lion Fight 56 (CBS Sports)
8:00pm: Shamrock Fighting Championship 319 (FloCombat)
8:00pm: Empire Fighting Championship: Knight vs. Davila ($14.99 Fite.tv)
9:00pm: Gennady Golovkin vs. Steve Rolls/Israil Madrimov vs. Norberto Gonzalez (DAZN)
10:00pm: Jason Sanchez vs. Oscar Valdez/Christopher Booker vs. Michael Seals (ESPN)
10:00pm: UFC 238 ($59.99 ESPN+ Pay-Per-View)
Sunday June 9
1:00am: UFC 238 Post-Fight Show (ESPN+)
Top-10 Viewing Options: Win, lose, or draw, a man that’s just happy to not be hearing from Cejudo and Eye for a while looks for the bright side.
1. UFC 238: Ferguson vs. Cerrone for main event, dammit. I want five rounds of the fireworks factory!
2. Jason Sanchez vs. Oscar Valdez/Christopher Booker vs. Michael Seals: Sanchez is only 14-0 and not ready for what Valdez is going to bring. Unfortunate mismatch and a puzzling decision.
3. Gennady Golovkin vs. Steve Rolls/Israil Madrimov vs. Norberto Gonzalez: …Steve Rolls. Steve goddamned Rolls. Before you start drawing the Ruiz-Joshua comparisons, Steve Rolls is no Andy Ruiz Jr.. No, I won’t hear of it.
4. Invicta Fighting Championship 35: The flyweight contender tournament wraps up, and I am a mark for a tournament.
5. Fight To Win 114: The ladies take center stage this weekend, with the always-dominant Gabi Garcia and maybe the fastest-rising star male or female in BJJ, Ffion Davies in action. Really, really good card.
6. Legacy Fighting Alliance 69: Hey, hey! Finally an LFA title fight, and a great one on deck. Enjoy flyweight action while you can.
7. Lion Fight 56: I miss Lion Fight on AXS Fight’s Friday night lineup, but alas, any combat sports getting regular exposure on a major network sports platform is always a good thing.
8. Enfusion 85: Reasonable price for an Enfusion card, but there’s not much outside of the main event, so, you know, it’s your money.
9. Friday Night Fights: Friday muay thai from NYC on Fight Pass. Worth your time, as American muay thai fighters need more exposure and pay to ply their trade in the world.
10. PFL Post-Fight Show: I do like that PFL goes against the grain and has fights on weekdays, but kinda bummed I can’t really talk about it on the weekend pieces.
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. 70kg Bout: Mo Hendouf vs. Tayfun Ozcan (82-8-3) [Arena Fight]
4. Lion Fight North American Lightweight Championship: Amine Ballafrikh (c) (11-3) vs. Ricardo Cruz (42-11-1)
3. Lion Fight World Cruiserweight Championship: Chip Moraza-Pollard (c) (10-0) vs. Kongjak Po Baoin (160-72-8)
2. Arena Fight 80kg Championship: Artur Kyshenko (72-13-4) vs. Yohan Lidon (99-38-1) [Arena Fight]
1. Enfusion 75kg World Championship: Endy Semeleer (c) (18-2) vs. Marouan Toutouh (49-5) [Enfusion Live 85]
BOXING
5. Vacant NABA Junior Welterweight Championship: Cletus Seldin (23-1) vs. Zab Judah (44-9) [Star Boxing on FITE]
4. WBO World Female Junior Welterweight Championship: Christina Linardatou (c) (11-1) vs. Deanha Hobbs (8-0)
3. Middleweight Bout: Gennady Golovkin (38-1-1) vs. Steve Rolls (19-0) [Matchroom Boxing on DAZN]
2. Junior Middleweight Bout: Israil Madrimov (2-0) vs. Norberto Gonzalez (23-12) [Matchroom Boxing on DAZN]
1. WBO World Featherweight Championship: Oscar Valdez (c) (25-0) vs. Jason Sanchez (14-0) [Top Rank on ESPN]
MMA
5. Women’s Strawweight Bout: Nina Ansaroff (10-5) vs. Tatiana Suarez (7-0) [UFC 238]
4. Bantamweight Bout: Jimmie Rivera (22-3) vs. Petr Yan (12-1) [UFC 238]
3. UFC Women’s Flyweight Championship: Valentina Shevchenko (c) (16-3) vs. Jessica Eye (14-6) [UFC 238]
2. Vacant UFC Bantamweight Championship: Henry Cejudo (14-2) vs. Marlon Moraes (22-5-1) [UFC 238]
1. Lightweight Bout: Donald Cerrone (36-11) vs. Tony Ferguson (24-3) [UFC 238]
GRAPPLING/WRESTLING
5. 210lb Black Belt No-Gi Bout: Ed Herman vs. John Diggins [Fight To Win 114]
4. 140lb Black Belt Bout: Baret Yoshida vs. Hiago George [Fight To Win 114]
3. 165lb Black Belt No-Gi Bout: Dustin Akbari vs. Nate Orchard [Fight To Win 114]
2. Fight To Win Female Black Belt Heavyweight Championship: Gabi Garcia (c) vs. Hillary Vanornum [Fight To Win 114]
1. Fight To Win Female Black Belt Bantamweight No-Gi Championship: Ffion Davies (c) vs. Catherine Fuhro Perret [Fight To Win 114]
Bold, Yet Probably Fruitless Predictions: After I took an absolute BATH last week after laying hard on Anthony Joshua (shut up, you did, too), I try and recoup some earnings that I certainly will not.
Best Fight of the Weekend: Donald Cerrone vs. Tony Ferguson
Most Underrated Fight of the Weekend: Endy Semeleer vs. Marouan Toutouh
If My Life Depended on One Pick: Gennady Golovkin over Steve Rolls
Best Card Top-to-Bottom: UFC 238
Upset of the Week: Donald Cerrone over Tony Ferguson
Most Disappointing Fight of the Weekend: Jessica Eye vs. Valentina Shevchenko
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