Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns to the hurt business tonight (Sat., Aug. 4, 2018) with UFC 227, which is set to go down from inside Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The pay-per-view (PPV) event will feature a Bantamweight championship rematch between current champion T.J. Dillashaw and Cody Garbrandt. In the co-main event, Demetrious Johnson will once again put his Flyweight title on the line against Henry Cejudo. UFC 227 CHEAT SHEET What UFC event is on tonight? UFC 227: “Dillashaw vs Garbrandt 2” Who is fighting tonight at UFC 227? T.J. Dillashaw vs Cody Garbrandt bantamweight title rematch is the main event. When does UFC 227 start? Today (Sat., Aug. 4, 2018), beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET on UFC Fight Pass. Where will UFC 227 take place? Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. How can I watch UFC 227? UFC Fight Pass “Prelims” start time at 6:30 p.m. ET. Then the remaining undercard balance on FX at 8 p.m. ET, before the pay-per-view (PPV) main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on PPV. Where can I get UFC 227 updates and results? Get full play-by-play updates and live coverage here! What’s Hot: Dillashaw was very adamant Cody did not deserve a rematch after he knocked him out at UFC 217 in Nov. 2017. But, after a failed “super fight” between UFC Flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson, Dillashaw had no other choice but to suck it up and accept the do-over. The hatred between the two hasn’t died down one bit, but the trash talk between the two has been kind of weak this time around. No fret, it’s not needed, they did enough bickering the first time around. Everyone understands that they don’t like each other. There’s no doubt both feel better and improved, but Dillashaw has that first win, so he is riding high on confidence, and don’t be surprised to see Cody a bit gun shy to start. But, once they start swinging, it could get nasty. Johnson has, in fact, cleaned out the 125-pound division to the point that he’s had to rematch people he’s already dominated once before. But, since he has no plans on moving up to the Bantamweight division anytime soon, that’s the way it’s going to be for a while. And that means his title defense record could be astronomical, as he is going for 12 straight against Cejudo, a man he knocked out a few years ago. To his credit, Cejudo worked his way up so he is deserving of another crack at the crown. Johnson hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down, which means if we have a repeat of their first fight, “Mighty Mouse” will have to wonder if he really wants to keep recycling through the same fighters or move up to 135 pounds for new challenges. Should both T.J. and Demetrious hold on to their straps once the dust settles, it could finally set up a much-talked about collission between the champions. What’s Not: After the Alexander Gustafsson vs Volkan Oezdemir fight was scrapped, the promotion didn’t make much of an effort to fill the card with an intriguing third fight to compliment the championship doubleheader, adding Thiago Santos vs Kevin Holland to the mix. Enough said. Original Card vs Actual Card: As mentioned earlier, Gustafsson was set to face Oezdemir in a pivotal Light Heavyweight bout before “No Time” was forced out with a broken nose. A few weeks later, Gustafsson bowed out with an injury of his own after Anthony Smith offered to step in to fill the void. Montel Jackson stepped in to fill the void for Benito Lopez, who was forced out of his fight against Ricky Simon. Injuries: Aside from Volkan’s injury, a women’s bantamweight showdown between Bethe Correia and Irene Aldana was scrapped just a few days before fight night after California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) deemed Bethe unfit to compete because of an undisclosed injury. New Blood: Kevin Holland was pegged to make his UFC debut against Thiago Santos on short notice, and he’ll get some prime real estate in his first bout as it will be the opening fight of the PPV portion of the event. The aforementioned Jackson was also the beneficiary of an injured fighter, stepping in for Lopez to face Ricky Simon. Also, Matt Sayles will make his first-ever leap into the Octagon to face off against Sheymon Moraes. To get more acclimated with these three UFC newcomers, click here to see Patrick Stumberg’s highly-detailed piece on all of UFC 227’s “New Blood.” How The ‘Prelims’ Look: Pedro Munhoz and Brett Johns will headline the underbelly of the event in a highly-intriguing Bantamweight showdown. Both men are on the cusp of taking the next leap in their respective careers, and a win for either one of them will help them get there. To be honest, that’s the only intriguing bout on the “Prelims,” but to get a more detailed look at what’s going on downstairs click here and here. Who Needs A Win Badly: Cub Swanson has lost two in a row, getting choked out by Brian Ortega in Dec. 2017 and then dropping a unanimous decision to Frankie Edgar four months later. “Killer Cub” needs to score a much-needed victory against Renato Moicano to avoid his first-ever three fight skid of his professional combat career. Moicano is no walk in the park, but when it comes to experience and pedigree, Cub has him beat. Whether or not that translates into an actual victory remains to be seen. Interest Level: 7/10 It’s an okay card, but it really isn’t shouting “buy me.” Plus, it doesn’t really seem like it’s been promoted heavy. Dillashaw vs. Garbrandt 2 is definitely a must watch, but I simply can’t get up for the do-over between Johnson and Cejudo. Henry could very well shock the world, so it has that going for it. But, I feel like we should be way more excited for a fight featuring the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world and the most dominant champion UFC has ever seen. We could be in for an exciting night of fights, but on paper, it’s not really standing out. Am I wrong? Full Fight Card: UFC 227 PPV Main Event: 135 lbs. : UFC Bantamweight Champion TJ Dillashaw vs. Cody Garbrandt UFC 227 PPV Main Card (10 p.m. ET): 125 lbs. : UFC Flyweight Champion Demetrious Johnson vs. Henry Cejudo 145 lbs. : Renato Moicano vs. Cub Swanson 115 lbs. : J.J. Aldrich vs. Polyana Viana 185 lbs. : Thiago Santos vs. Kevin Holland UFC 227 Prelims on FX (8 p.m. ET): 135 lbs. : Pedro Munhoz vs. Brett Johns 135 lbs. : Ricky Simon vs. Montel Jackson 135 lbs. : Kyung Ho Kang vs. Ricardo Ramos 145 lbs. : Sheymon Moraes vs. Matt Sayles UFC 227 Prelims on Fight Pass (6:30 p.m. ET): 125 lbs. : Alex Perez vs. Jose Torres 115 lbs. : Danielle Taylor vs. Weili Zhang 135 lbs. : Wuliji Buren vs. Marlon Vera For more upcoming UFC events click here.<doc-sep>Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) bantamweight champion, TJ Dillashaw, will defend his 135-pound strap against top contender and former titleholder Cody Garbrandt in the upcoming UFC 227 pay-per-view (PPV) main event, scheduled for tonight (Sat., Aug. 4, 2018) inside Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. Dillashaw (15-3) and Garbrandt (11-1) first went to war at UFC 217 last November, with “No Love” getting stopped by way of second-round technical knockout. Their bitter rivalry, as well as a lack of top-ranked contenders, has prompted the promotion to book an immediate rematch. Check out their fight video preview above. MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 227 fight card TONIGHT (click here), starting with the Fight Pass “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard balance on FX at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET. To see who else is fighting at UFC 227 click here.<doc-sep>
NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 04: TJ Dillashaw and Cody Garbrandt face off before their UFC bantamweight championship bout during the UFC 217 event at Madison Square Garden on November 4, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images) Here is everything you need to know about the UFC 227 fight card, the main event between TJ Dillashaw and Cody Garbrandt and how you can watch it. UFC 227 is shaping up to be one of the more interesting cards of 2018. The 13 fight card features five bantamweight fights, including two title fights and several fighters capable of putting on a fight of the night. In the main event, hated rivals TJ Dillashaw and Cody Garbrandt fight for the second time. At UFC 217, TJ Dillashaw knocked out Cody Garbrandt to win the bantamweight championship. However, that fight could have easily gone the other way. Garbrandt had a very strong first round and could have stopped Dillashaw, before getting caught early in the second. The fight added to one of the biggest UFC rivalries. The two fighters have engaged in a war of wars since Dillashaw had a falling out with Team Alpha Male, where Garbrandt trains. The rivalry was further increased when the two fighters were the coaches on The Ultimate Fighter. In the co-main, Demetrious Johnson looks to defend his flyweight title for a record 12th time. Johnson will fight Henry Cejudo, a fighter Johnson knocked out at UFC 197. The flyweight champion enters the fight with a 27-2-1 record with 11 submissions and five knockouts. Johnson has won 13 straight fights and not loss since October 2011. Cejudo has won two straight fights, improving his record to 12-2 with five knockouts. On the main card, ranked featherweight fighters Cub Swanson and Renato Moicano clash in what could be one of the most exciting players on the card. Swanson is 25-9 is his career with eight knockouts, seven submissions and has been awarded fight of the night bonuses eight times. However, Swanson is coming off of back to back losses to Frankie Edgar and Brian Ortega. Moicano is 12-1-1, his lone loss was also against Ortega. In his last fight, Moicano defeated Calvin Kattar at UFC 223. In the main event of the preliminary card, ranked bantamweight contenders Pedro Munhoz and Brett Johns collide. Both fighters enter UFC 227 coming off of losses. Munhoz is 15-3-1, with nine submissions but is coming off of a loss to John Dodson in his last fight. Johns started his career with 15 straight wins, before losing his first career fight to Aljamain Sterling in April. Date: Saturday, August 4 Start Time: Prelims at 6:15 p.m. ET, Main card at 10:00 p.m. ET Location: Los Angeles, California Venue: Staples Center TV Info: UFC Fight Pass, FX, Pay-Per-View Prelim Live Stream: UFC.TV | Fox Sports Go PPV Live Stream: UFC.TV PPV | DirecTV The full fight card can be found below. Main Card – Pay-Per-View 10:00 p.m. ET Bantamweight – TJ Dillashaw (c) vs. Cody Garbrandt Flyweight – Demetrious Johnson (c) vs. Henry Cejudo Featherweight – Cub Swanson vs. Renato Moicano Women’s Strawweight – Polyana Viana vs. JJ Aldrich Middleweight – Thiago Santos vs. Kevin Holland Preliminary Card – FX 8:00 p.m. ET Bantamweight – Pedro Munhoz vs. Brett Johns Bantamweight – Ricky Simon vs. Montel Jackson Women’s Bantamweight – Bethe Correia vs. Irene Aldana Featherweight – Matt Sayles vs. Sheymon Moraes Preliminary Card – UFC Fight Pass 6:15 p.m. ET