The championship fight. The pinnacle of achievement across combat sports for centuries. A premiere attraction that draws millions every year. But not all title bouts are created equally.
So which title bouts every week are the ones to watch? We’ll look over every title fight from across the combat sports landscape and give you the five best based on five criteria:
- Competitiveness: Is this an even matchup? Or just a warm body to throw at a champion? It’s a title fight, so we want the best possible at that division in that promotion.
- Excitement: How exciting will this fight be? A clash of two elite talents throwing everything they have at each other in an attempt to win the gold? Or a half-dead plod-fest devoid of action or risk?
- Juice: A sort of catch-all term for all the factors behind the matchup. Is there a story leading up to the match? A true rivalry? Anticipated rematch? Do the fighters dislike each other? Were the circumstances leading to the fight extraordinary, or was it just a promoter putting two names against each other? Is there a lot of excitement or hype going into it?
- Prestige: Applies to the belt itself, but also to the fighter wearing it. Is this a long-tenured champion defending? Is this an interim title or one that was vacated? Has the champion increased the prestige of the title or is this a fight that will increase the prestige of it?
- Viewing Ease: We all don’t mind suffering for our art (or hobbies), but sometimes paying twenty dollars for a choppy stream, or searching your cable plan for a channel you’re pretty sure was just invented three days ago in the 6000s isn’t the best of times. How easy, affordable, and stress-free is this bout to watch?
So here are your five best gold options for the weekend.
5. IBF World Junior Lightweight Championship: Tevin Farmer (c) (29-4-1) vs. Guillaume Frenois (46-1-1)
When/Where: Saturday, 9:00pm, DAZN
Competitiveness: 2: Don’t let the record fool you. Frenois is almost 36 and has only fought outside France a handful of times, and never outside of Europe. He’s also coming off of a draw to Jono Carroll, whom Farmer recently dispatched, and his opponent before that was 24-16-2.
Excitement: 2
Juice: 2: Farmer’s career will always be fascinating to me. Starting his pro career 7-4-1, then to rally to become world champion.
Prestige: 5
Viewing Ease: 4
Total: 15
4. UFC Featherweight Championship: Max Holloway (c) (20-4) vs. Frankie Edgar (23-6-1)
When/Where: Saturday, 10:00pm, Pay-Per-View
Competitiveness: 2: You probably won’t find a bigger Frankie Edgar fan than myself. He does not deserve this. At all. If the judges would have just given him ONE of those Bendo decisions, he probably would have been happily retired by now!
Excitement: 5
Juice: 1: Two of the nicest fighters in the world, so don’t expect any crazy trash-talk.
Prestige: 5
Viewing Ease: 3
Total: 16
t2. WBA Super World Junior Lightweight Championship: Gervonta Davis (c) (21-0) vs. Ricardo Nunes (21-2)
When/Where: Saturday, 9:00pm, Showtime
Competitiveness: 4: Nunes is a middling contender, but his power to stop any fight at any time bumps him up a notch.
Excitement: 5: Dear sweet baby Jesus, can these boys hit. 39 out of 42 combined wins by T/KO! And at 130lbs, no less!
Juice: 1
Prestige: 5
Viewing Ease: 3
Total: 18
t2. Fight To Win Black Belt Welterweight No-Gi Championship: Vagner Rocha (c) vs. JT Torres
When/Where: Saturday, 5:30pm, FloGrappling
Competitiveness: 5: Rocha and Torres are two of the best and brightest in the grappling world, and battling over a title makes this all the better.
Excitement: 4
Juice: 2
Prestige: 3: The problem with F2W, despite being the most consistent grappling promotion in the world, is that they have way too many goddamned titles. It’s impossible to keep up.
Viewing Ease: 4
Total: 18
1. WBC/WBO World Junior Welterweight Championships: Jose Carlos Ramirez (c) (24-0) vs. Maurice Hooker (c) (26-0-3)
When/Where: Saturday, 9:00pm, DAZN
Competitiveness: 5: Two legit undefeated world champions, and also, each other’s biggest tests.
Excitement: 3
Juice: 2:
Prestige: 5: Title unifications are my absolute jam.
Viewing Ease: 4
Total: 19
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