I can't be the only one pumped about UFC 200. Usually people are surprised I enjoy watching MMA, but I have my friends to thank my interests for. And July 9 is about to be the most magical experience for me in my short 21 years of life, just because I am seeing so many good match-ups that don't include McGregor or Rousey. The main card is so amazing and you can't even go wrong with the pre-lims or undercard, either.
The Title Fight
Clearly Jon "Bones" Jones vs Daniel "DC" Cormier is one of the biggest rematches to date. Both light heavyweight powerhouses are fighting for the fame and title, but only one will be able to come out on top. They are both great fighters and clearly for that reason this is why we have the rematch. Jones being number one and Cormier being the champ makes this bought one to buy the pay per view for. But we can't count out the other amazing fights that made its way to 200.
The Comeback
Can we please take a moment to realize the history that is about to be made with Brock Lesnar and Mark "Super Samoan" Hunt? When the 200 promo came out even Joe Rogan had no idea Lesnar would be back when it aired during 199. I can't even fathom what is about to happen in the octagon on July 9 with these two. Hunt is a huge powerhouse and is one of my personal favorite heavyweights. But Lesnar has been in this octagon before too. He was champ before leaving on a losing streak to join the WWE. All I can say is if Lesnar gets Hunt to the ground, it may be all over. But if Hunt plans to go for the classic knockout punch, he may be in luck. Hopefully Hunt is working on his ground game just in case the worst happens.
The Long Journey
Misha "Cupcake" Tate has been working years to claim the bantamweight title. With upsets like Rousey, she finally came out on top when Holly "The Preacher's Daughter" Holm defeated Rousey, kicking her out of the way (literally) for Tate to claim the title from her a few weeks later. Now Amanda "The Lioness" Nunes is ready for a shot to claim the title that Tate has been working so hard to achieve. The rivalry is real, and these talented fighters are sure to battle it out.
The Warriors
Featherweight fighters Jose "Junior" Aldo and Frankie "The Answer" Edgar are no strangers to each other in the octagon. Both great fighters battled it out on UFC 156 back in 2013, where Aldo retained his title. Recently (if you don't already know), Aldo has lost his title to Conor "The Notorious" McGregor. This was an upset in the UFC to see such a long-term title holder lose in a matter of seconds to a fresh face. But Aldo isn't about to back down from defeat and is ready to take on Edgar again for the interim featherweight title. Both fighters have amazing skill, so it will be interesting to see which way this fight goes.
The Heavyweights
The fact that we have two (three including light heavyweight between Cormier and Jones) heavyweight bouts on 200 is pretty exciting. All the heavyweights are well known (my favorite word) powerhouses in the UFC. Their names are recognizable even to the casual watchers. Cain Velasquez is back after his title loss back in 2015 to Fabricio Werdum. He will be fighting Travis " Hapa" Browne. I feel like this will most definitely be an interesting fight on 200 and personally am hoping to see Velasquez gain some power back after his defeat. There's no doubt about their greatness, but only one can come out on top.
Not only is the main card amazing, but we can't forget about the undercard and how many great fights that holds as well. You can check them all out on the UFC official website along with stats. http://www.ufc.com/event/ufc200?id=
Undercard includes:
Cat "Alpha" Zingano vs. Julianna "The Venezuelan Vixen" Pena
Johny "Bigg Rigg" Hendricks vs. Kelvin Gastelum
TJ Dillashaw vs. Raphael Assuncao
Sage "Super" Northcutt vs. Enrique "Wasabi" Marin
And for your viewing pleasure, here is the UFC 200 promo that got me so pumped when it aired during 199.
Also a more recent one because it's going to be awesome.
Who do you hope takes home a win on 200?