UFC 209 Preview : Conor McGregor awaits...

Last Updated : 24th February, 2017 By Alex M

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UFC 209 takes place on March 4 and emanating from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada and it has a stacked card without any of their traditional heavy-hitting big names. No Conor McGregor, no Ronda Rousey, no Jon Jones and, hell, no Brock Lesnar! Probably never again for the latter in fact, but I digress; the UFC are showcasing some top fighters who have wowed fans in recent memory and they are relying on their fighting skills to sell this pay-per-view. If that is your primary concern when watching UFC, you're in for a treat. Here's the main card:

Lando Vannata Vs David Teymur

This is a lightweight bout that the UFC have purposely put together with the vision of these two young men hammering 10 lumps out of each other. Lando Vannata is the relatively better-known competitor after his Knockout of the Year candidate in his last fight with a spinning-kick KO of John Makdessi at UFC 206, and the only blemish on his record thus far is a submission loss to Tony Ferguson - which is nothing to be ashamed of. Teymur has registered two impressive KO wins in his first two UFC bouts and enters this fight as a plausible challenger, but Vannata, who has finished seven of his 10 fights in the first round, should win here after a decent scrap.

Alistair Overeem Vs. Mark Hunt

The last time we saw Mark Hunt, he was losing to Brock Lesnar at UFC 200 (which, as we know, was eventually overturned). The last time we saw Alistair Overeem, he challenged Stipe Miocic for the UFC heavyweight title at UFC 203, and despite putting the champ down in the first round, Overeem himself would be knocked out minutes later. So what we have is an interesting fight between two heavyweights looking to get back into title contention. Overeem is certainly the greater athlete, but Hunt is arguably the bigger puncher. Still, Overeem's conditioning should help him win.

Get odds of 8/11 with Paddy Power for an Alistair Overeem win (£30 free bet)

Rashad Evans Vs Daniel Kelly

Rashad Evans, now 37-years-old, is a former UFC light-heavyweight champion, but he looks a far cry from those glory days now. Having lose four of his last six fights, the latest of which was a first-round knockout to Glover Teixeira last April, Evans is trying to rebuild himself at 185lbs in the middleweight division. Awaiting him is Daniel Kelly, a four-time Olympian judo master who, although he is 40 this year, has won his last three fights in a row can really pile the misery on Evans here.

Khabib Nurmagomedov Vs Tony Ferguson

Now it's getting interesting. This bout will be for the UFC interim lightweight title with the victor going on to face Conor McGregor for the undisputed strap somewhere down the line. This is a beautiful clash of styles with Nurmagomedov, 24-0, one of the best grapplers in the entire UFC facing off against Ferguson, currently on a nine-fight winning streak, the most recent of which came over former champ Rafael dos Anjos, who has a high-intensity, high-pressure style with electric finishing capabilities. Both men are in their prime and hungry to reach the top and while the fight will be incredible either way, Nurmagomedov is such a fantastic competitor that he will edge it.

Best available odds on a Khabib Nurmagomedov victory are 8/15 with Bet365

Tyron Woodley Vs Stephen Thompson II

The main event. The rematch from UFC 205 that everybody wanted to see is finally upon us and after the initial clash spawned a draw, there is definitely business to settle. Stephen 'Wonderboy' Thompson has long been considered one of the best and most dangerous strikers in the UFC. His legs go on forever and he has a reach that is hard to penetrate, but Woodley did a fantastic job in their first meeting of staying on top of Thompson through sheer spirit and conditioning, both of which were superior to his challenger's. With the welterweight title on the line, Woodley is motivated to show he should have won the first battle as originally thought but Woodley brought on long periods of pressure the last time they met and he can catch the champ like he has many top 10 competitors before.

Stephen Thompson is available at 4/5 with Skybet for the victory (£10 free bet)