Welcome to F4WOnline.com's live coverage of UFC on ESPN+ 61: Santos vs. Ankalaev, emanating from the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The Octagon is back at the UFC APEX this weekend with a light heavyweight main event that will have an effect on the title picture at 205 pounds.
Former title challenger Thiago Santos looks to score his second straight win as he takes on Magomed Ankalaev, winner of seven straight fights. Santos is coming into this off a win over Johnny Walker in October, while Ankalaev was also last in action in October, scoring a decision over Volkan Oezdemir. The winner will be in the mix for a possible title shot for their next fight.
Among the rest of the main card fights include a bantamweight bout between former title challenger Marlon Moraes and Song Yadong in the co-main event, a featherweight bout pitting Sodiq Yusuff against Alex Caceres, a lightweight bout between Drew Dober and short-notice replacement Terrance McKinney, and a middleweight slugfest as Alex Pereira takes on Bruno Silva.
Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 4 p.m. Eastern time with preliminary action all the way through the main card.
ESPN+ PRELIMS | 4 PM ET/1 PM PT
> Light Heavyweights- Tafon Nchukwi (6-1, 2-1 UFC) vs. Azamat Murzakanov (10-0, 0-0 UFC)
> Bantamweights- Kris Moutinho (9-5, 0-1 UFC) vs. Guido Cannetti (8-6, 2-5 UFC)
> Middleweights- Dalcha Lungiambula (11-3, 2-2 UFC) vs. Cody Brundage (6-2, 0-1 UFC)
> Women's Flyweights- Sabina Mazo (9-3, 3-3 UFC) vs. Miranda Maverick (9-4, 2-2 UFC)
> Featherweights- Damon Jackson (19-4-1 1 NC, 2-2-1 1 NC UFC) vs. Kamuela Kirk (11-4, 1-0 UFC)
> Bantamweights- Trevin Jones (13-7 1 NC, 1-1 1 NC UFC) vs. Javid Basharat (11-0, 0-0 UFC)
> Women's Flyweights- JJ Aldrich (10-4, 6-3 UFC) vs. Gillian Robertson (10-6, 7-4 UFC)
> Welterweights- Matthew Semelsberger (9-3, 3-1 UFC) vs. AJ Fletcher (9-0, 0-0 UFC)
ESPN+ MAIN CARD | 7 PM ET/4 PM PT
> Middleweights- Alex Pereira (4-1, 1-0 UFC) vs. Bruno Silva (22-6, 3-0 UFC)
> Lightweights- Drew Dober (23-11 1 NC, 9-7 1 NC UFC) vs. Terrance McKinney (12-3, 2-0 UFC)
> Light Heavyweights- Khalil Rountree (9-5 1 NC, 5-5 1 NC UFC) vs. Karl Roberson (9-4, 4-4 UFC)
> Featherweights- #12 Sodiq Yusuff (11-2, 4-1 UFC) vs. #15 Alex Caceres (19-12 1 NC, 14-10 1 NC UFC)
> Bantamweights- #10 Marlon Moraes (23-9-1, 5-5 UFC) vs. #14 Song Yadong (18-5-1 1 NC, 7-1-1 UFC)
> Light Heavyweights- #5 Thiago Santos (22-9, 14-8 UFC) vs. #6 Magomed Ankalaev (16-1, 7-1 UFC)
More must-reads: