Aldo’s return to the UFC and the defense of the “absolute” Canelo. Main fights of the week
Igor Nekrasov April 29, 2024, 10:15 Moscow time Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
We are also waiting for the Russian woman’s fight for the ONE belt.
The new week will bring new tournaments for martial arts fans. Thus, the UFC 301 tournament will be held in Brazil, in which Alexander Pantoja will defend the championship belt, and José Aldo will try to triumphantly return to the league two years later. There will also be plenty of boxing this week, including a fight between absolute world champion, Saúl Álvarez. We present to your attention the main battles that will take place from April 29 to May 5.
The night of May 3 to 4. Natalya Dyachkova – Smilla Sandell
The next tournament of the strongest Asian promotion, ONE, will take place in Bangkok. The tournament will be headlined by the women’s fight for the championship belt at the minimum weight according to the rules of Muay Thai. Sweden’s Smilla Sandell, 19, is the reigning queen of the division and will face Russia’s Natalya Dyachkova in her third defense of her belt. During the year at ONE, Dyachkova earned four wins, three of which were early, and now she claims the Asian League belt.
Natalia Dyachkova
Photo: From the athlete’s personal file.
May 4th. Emmanuel Rodriguez – Ryosuke Nishida
On May 4, a boxing tournament will be held in Osaka (Japan), the main event of which will be the fight for the title in the bantamweight category. The Puerto Rican Emmanuel Rodríguez will defend the IBF championship belt for the first time in a duel against the Japanese Ryosuke Nishida. Last August, Rodríguez (22-2) stopped Melvin López to become champion. Now Emmanuel went to Japan, to the territory of the challenger – Nishida. Ryosuke still has a fairly modest record (8-0), and has only won early once, in his first fight as a professional. Rodriguez is considered the favorite here, but Nishida has arguments against this deal.
Night of May 4 to 5. Alejandro Pantoja – Steve Erceg
On the night of May 5, the UFC 301 tournament will take place in Rio de Janeiro, which will be headlined by one of the organization’s two Brazilian champions, Alexandre Pantoja. Of course, it would be logical for the event to host a fight with Alex Pereira, but he recently competed at UFC 300 and, despite all attempts, was unable to perform on his home soil. But viewers will see another title fight, in which Pantoja will defend the champion belt of the flyweight division against Steve Erceg. In July 2023, the Brazilian defeated Brandon Moreno to become the new king of the division, and in December he made his first defense against Brandon Royval. Now the promising Steve Erceg is fighting for his title. Interestingly, Erceg is ranked 10th in the rankings, but he managed to beat all competitors and get the title fight.
Alexandra Pantozha
Photo: Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Night of May 4 to 5. José Aldo – Jonathan Martínez
In the co-main event of UFC 301, viewers will see a legendary return: José Aldo will once again appear in the cage of the best league in the world. The Brazilian last fought under the auspices of the UFC two years ago, losing to Merab Dvalishvili. After this, the former featherweight champion and one of the most dominant champions in the league tried his hand at boxing, but still decided to return to his usual octagon. The UFC 301 card was not the most exciting for fights, but the return of José Aldo will clearly increase interest in it. The Brazilian will share the cage with the American Jonathan Martínez, who has a streak of six consecutive victories: the fight with Aldo will be a real test of strength for Martínez.
Why did Aldo decide to return to the UFC?
Fashion for retirees or name crisis? José Aldo returned to the world’s main league
The night of May 4 to 5. Saúl Álvarez – Jaime Munguía
A large-scale professional boxing tournament will take place in Las Vegas on May 4. In the main event of the evening, viewers will see a Mexican showdown. One of the most famous boxers of our time, absolute super middleweight world champion Saúl Álvarez will defend his belts against undefeated compatriot Jaime Munguía. Canelo’s appearance in the ring is always a big event. Many expected to see him fight David Benavidez, but Álvarez and his team had other plans. Saúl’s opponent will be Mexican Jaime Munguía, 27, with an impressive record of 43-0. In his last fight, Munguía finished John Ryder, a Briton whom Canelo defeated only by decision. Title-hungry Jaime against the confident and experienced Canelo: the fight promises to be extremely intriguing.
