Heavyweight title action is on tap Saturday night when Derrick Lewis and Ciryl Gane clash for the UFC interim title in the main event of UFC 265. The action goes down from Houston’s Toyota Center live on pay-per-view.
Gane rose through the shallow heavyweight ranks with relative ease after making his promotional debut in August 2019. The Frenchman has a perfect 6-0 record in the Octagon an will be making just his 10th overall MMA appearance on Saturday night. He outpointed both Alexander Volkov and Jairzinho Rozenstruik in his last two appearances after scoring a thudding TKO of former champion Junior Dos Santos in December.
Lewis is getting his second opportunity at UFC gold after coming up short against then-champion Daniel Cormier in November 2018. The winner will be set up to take on heavyweight champ Francis Ngannou as soon as all parties are ready to sign on the dotted line.
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There may not be a ton of stakes attached to any of the undercard bouts on Saturday, but there’s sure to be plenty of firepower. Look no further than the co-main event when Brazilians Jose Aldo and Pedro Munhoz meet in a bantamweight clash. Plus, all-action warrior Vicente Luque takes on submission and grappling specialist Michael Chiesa in a featured bout at 170 pounds that could help shape a future contender for the title.
The prelims also see the return of some interesting names. Former women’s strawweight title challenger Karolina Kowalkiewicz is back and moving up in weight to take on Jessica Penne at 125 pounds. Kowalkiewicz, 35, hinted at retirement following her latest loss in February 2020 to Yan Xiaonan. The defeat ran Kowalkiewicz’s losing skid to four and she’s dropped six of her last eight. Penne presents an interesting challenge, however, as the fellow veteran is coming off a split decision win in April that was her first Octagon appearance in four years. The win also ended a three-fight losing skid for Penne.
Here’s how you can catch all the action going down in H-Town on Saturday night.
How to watch UFC 265 prelims
Date: Aug. 7 | Location: Toyota Center — Houston
Time: 6 p.m. ET
Channel: ESPN 2 | Stream: fuboTV (try for free)
How to watch UFC 265 main card
Date: Aug. 7 | Location: Toyota Center — Houston
Time: 10 p.m. ET
Stream: ESPN+ | Price: $69.99
UFC 265 main card, odds
| Ciryl Gane -340 | Derrick Lewis +270 | Interim heavyweight title |
| Jose Aldo -135 | Pedro Munhoz +115 | Bantamweights |
| Vicente Luque -110 | Michael Chiesa -110 | Welterweights |
| Tecia Torres -150 | Angela Hill +125 | Women’s strawweights |
| Casey Kenney -120 | Song Yadong +100 | Bantamweights |
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