UFC on ABC 9 Brings Awesome Main Card to Abu Dhabi This Saturday Night

UFC on ABC 9 Main Event: No. 5 Contender Robert Whittaker vs. No. 13 Contender Reinier de Ridder

At the top of the bill on Saturday night, the middleweights take to the Octagon when No. 5 contender Robert Whittaker (26-8 MMA, 17-6 UFC) meets up with No. 13 contender, former ONE Championship stalwart Reinier de Ridder (20-2 MMA, 3-0 UFC) in the latter’s initial UFC main event.

As with all UFC main events, Saturday’s headliner at UFC on ABC 9 is an advertised maximum of five rounds at five minutes per round to close out the night’s activities. Whittaker will be making his 24th walk to the fabled Octagon this weekend having posted a record of 3-2 in his last five fights.

Most recently, he was on the losing end of a face crank submission from Khamzat Chimaev (14-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) last October during UFC 308 from the selfsame Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. Earlier this week, Whittaker was a guest of The Ariel Helwani Show, where he said that he’s eyeing one final shot at the UFC Middleweight Championship before permanently hanging up his gloves.

“Realistically, I only want to fight for a couple more years,” he told Helwani. “There’s other things I want to do still. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I understand it is my last big push, the last sprint, the last 100 meters of the race.”

His opponent in UFC on ABC 9’s main event is a tough customer at the shop, because across the way, Reinier de Ridder, the former ONE Middleweight and Light Heavyweight MMA Champion, has gone 4-1 in his last five fights.

At the moment, he’s on a four-fight winning streak dating back to July of last year. On May 2, he traveled to Des Moines, IA to meet Bo Nickal (7-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC), scoring a second-round knockout with a body shot.

RDR has done well for himself since leaving ONE Championship in early 2024. The UFC on ABC 9 main event could be his ticket to a spot in the top-10 at 185 lbs if he gets his hand raised in victory here.

UFC on ABC 9 Co-Main Event: No. 3 Contender Petr Yan vs. No. 12 Contender Marcus McGhee

Immediately prior to Whittaker battling de Ridder in the UFC on ABC 9 main event, the co-main event of the evening shifts to the bantamweight division for a contest between No. 3 contender Petr Yan (18-5 MMA, 10-4 UFC) and No. 13 contender Marcus McGhee. This co-main event will be a three-round affair at five minutes per round.

Yan will be making the walk in Abu Dhabi this Saturday night having gone 2-3 in his last five fights. He’s on the upswing of late, having emerged victorious from his last two fights. Last time out, he defeated Deiveson Figuereido (24-5-1 MMA, 13-5-1 UFC) by way of unanimous decision after three rounds of action during UFC Macau in November.

It goes without saying that this is a crucial fight for Petr Yan and his camp in UFC on ABC 9’s co-main event. Should he get his hand raised in victory here, his next appearance could be a title fight.

Meanwhile, Marcus McGhee enters Abu Dhabi with a perfect 5-0 record over his past five fights as part of an ongoing six-fight winning streak. Back in November, McGhee set foot inside The World’s Most Famous Arena, Madison Square Garden, besting Jonathan Martinez (19-6 MMA, 10-5 UFC) via unanimous decision during UFC 309.

When a fighter is on a hot streak, as Marcus McGhee is right now, he’s at his most dangerous. Petr Yan shouldn’t take McGhee lightly heading into UFC on ABC 9 on Saturday night. One punch could put McGhee in the top-10 at 135 lbs.

UFC on ABC 9: Shara Magomedov vs. Marc-Andre Barriault

Also on the main card, you’ll be seeing a middleweight contest pairing Shara Magomedov (15-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) against Marc-Andre Barriault (17-9, 1 NC MMA, 6-8, 1 NC UFC.) Magomedov has gone 4-1 over the course of his last five fights.

On Feb. 1, he saw a 15-fight winning streak to begin his career snapped via unanimous decision at the hands of MVP, Michael “Venom” Page (23-3 MMA, 2-1 UFC) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Prior to that loss, the only thing that stopped Shara Magomedov was a pair of postponed fights that were scheduled for last year.

Coming in off of a defeat is a new experience for him, so how will Shara Magomedov bounce back when the cage door closes on Saturday night?

In the other corner, Marc-Andre Barriault has posted a record of 2-3 in his last five contests. Two months ago, he got back to the win column thanks to a first-round knockout (elbows inside the clinch) over Bruno Silva (23-13 MMA, 4-7 UFC) during UFC 315.

Barriault is facing a quick turnaround going into UFC on ABC 9 on Saturday evening. By the time the fight begins, just 77 days will have elapsed between fights. Will the short hiatus be helpful or a hindrance?

Final Thoughts

Which fight or fights are you looking forward to on the UFC on ABC 9 main card?