When he has competed, the 28-year-old has shown Top 10 potential, posting victories in his first three Octagon appearances before dropping a split decision to Renato Moicano at UFC 198. Now riding a five-fight winning streak and still undefeated when he’s not fighting “The Iron Lion” Leon Mynhardt, this is an opportunity for Madge to remind people of his impressive debut performance and establish himself as one of the top emerging talents in the lightweight ranks. Sporting an unbeaten 8-0 record, Murphy is one of those newcomers who are hard to peg. Find your start time here. UFC 242: Khabib vs. Poirier was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on September 7, 2019 at The Arena, Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. 7 and 10 respectively in the rankings, and boasting a combined resume that includes appearances against the majority of the competitors ahead of them in the divisional hierarchy at the moment. Another bout that highlights the depth of this card — and the overall depth of talent competing in the UFC today — this clash between veteran middleweights carries explosive potential. Salikhov rebounded from a second-round submission loss in his promotional debut with a second-round stoppage win in his sophomore appearance in April 2018, but has been sidelined since then, making it clear that the 35-year-old former Wushu Sanda world champion will be looking to make up for lost time in this one. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC), MONCTON, NB - OCTOBER 27: Don Madge of South Africa celebrates after his knockout victory over Te Edwards in their lightweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event on October 27, 2018 in Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada. Instead of facing the unbeaten champion, Ramos now gets in his protégé in a pairing between surging fighters trying to make some real headway in the stacked lightweight ranks. This is an absolutely captivating fight on a number of different levels. He’s won them all, earning three straight Performance of the Night bonuses prior to his victory over Desmond Green last September in Moscow, and he boasts a 7-1 record under the UFC banner. This one shows just how deep and talented the UFC lightweight ranks are as Taisumov and Ferreira have combined to win 10 straight appearances, yet neither has managed to crack the Top 15. Although the UFC lightweight title hangs in the balance, this one is also about legacy, as Poirier looks to shock the world and continue his incredible run of success by becoming the first to defeat Nurmagomedov, while the unbeaten superstar from Dagestan aims to maintain his unblemished record and position himself for something even bigger next time out. Live from the UFC APEX in Las Vegas. On one hand, he’s handled his business without incident, posting eight consecutive wins, five of them by stoppage, including his most recent victory in May. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC), OTTAWA, ON - MAY 04: Nordine Taleb of Canada reacts after the conclusion of his welterweight bout against Kyle Prepolec of Canada during the UFC Fight Night event at Canadian Tire Centre on May 4, 2019 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. He’s won five of six since dropping his promotional debut, including an impressive second-round finish of Marcin Tybura last time out. United Arab … A two-time TUF contestant, the 37-year-old Taleb has been a fixture on the UFC roster for five years, amassing a 7-4 record. Unfortunately, the Elevation Fight Team member has shared the cage with Ngannou on two occasions and come out on the wrong side of things both times, most recently getting stopped in just 45 seconds last November in Beijing. He arrives in Abu Dhabi on a five-fight winning streak and brimming with confidence as he competes alongside his teammate and mentor Nurmagomedov for the first time in his UFC career. The smothering grappler dismantled Conor McGregor in his last outing and continues to make strides with his striking, becoming even more dangerous with each appearance. A ton of question marks surround this featherweight contest slated for the preliminary portion of Saturday’s fight card. Makhachev has been positioned as a future championship contender since arriving in the UFC a little over four years ago, and save for a misfire against Adriano Martins at UFC 192, the 27-year-old has delivered. The winner takes a major step forward in the star-studded lightweight division and will have earned a major feather in their cap in the process. Find out when the next UFC event is and see specifics … One of two lightweight battles on the preliminary portion of the UFC 242 fight card, this one pits the undefeated Azaitar against the returning Packalen. The 31-year-old “Wolverine” is unbeaten over his last four outings, going 3-0-1 in that span, including a unanimous decision win over Tim Boetsch last time out. Secondly, Saturday’s co-main event is a sequel, a follow-up to their July 2015 clash in Chicago that garnered Fight of the Night honors with Barboza winning by unanimous decision with scores of 29-28 across the board. The compact and powerful Brazilian was disappointed with his effort following that fight, but promised a return to form when he returned, telling Felder, who was serving as an analyst that evening, that there was only one man he was really focused on fighting: Nurmagomedov.