It may no longer be the Conor McGregor show, but Saturday's UFC 303 card in Las Vegas remains one of the better looking lineups of the year. After the Irishman suffered an injury in training, causing the cancellation of his main event fight with Michael Chandler, the UFC scrambled to find a new headliner for the card. Ultimately, it landed on a light heavyweight title rematch between champ Alex Pereira and challenger Jiri Prochazka.
It will be the second time the two fan favorites have met, after the Brazilian knocked out Prochazka in a fight for the vacant belt last November. The co-headliner also came together on short notice. It will be contested at featherweight, with former title challenger Brian Ortega taking on the fast-rising Diego Lopes.
The pair are two of the best submission specialists in the division, and both possess dangerous striking, so all signs point to a thrilling contest. Earlier on the card, former light heavyweight title challenger Anthony Smith will take on middleweight contender Roman Dolidze in another short-notice scrap. That will be preceded by a women's bantamweight fight between Mayra Bueno Silva and Macy Chiasson, and a welterweight fight between Michael Page and Ian Machado Garry to kick off the main card.
All told, it looks like a great night of fights, and as always, the B/R combat sports squad has you covered for pre-fight predictions. Haris Kruskic: This card isn't what anyone expected a few weeks ago, but that doesn't mean it's a bad one. .
