UFC 274 PREVIEW
Charles Oliveira and Justin Gaethje top stacked card in Phoenix. UFC 274 will be shown by pay-TV broadcaster BT Sport.
After boxing dominated the combat sports world over the past two weeks, with Tyson Fury cementing his claim as the number 1 heavyweight in the world with a dominant KO win over Dillian Whyte at Wembley Stadium before Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano put on the fight of the year on a history making night at the legendary Madison Square Garden, it’s time for the UFC to reclaim the throne.
Our UFC 274 preview is brought to you in partnership with EPL Index, and Dave Hendrick – host of the Two Footed Podcast, offering FREE podcasts to football fans.
We should pause a second to highlight the achievements of Taylor and Serrano, the first females to ever headline a card at MSG. Two of the greatest female fighters of all time, the pair came together to put on a thrilling fight that left fans calling for a rematch because of the tenacity and skill they displayed. Though the Irish woman had her hand raised, Serrano did her reputation no harm and if the pair do meet again then it’s likely to be a sold out stadium with an even bigger audience that the 1.5million who tuned in to watch on DAZN and the countless others who watched on IPTV services and streams.
Taylor and Serrano have both done a lot to break down barriers for women in boxing, but their fight last Saturday night may do even more than that. It might well have propelled women’s boxing into the spotlight it has long deserved.
UFC 274 Card
- UFC Lightweight Championship: Charles Oliveira (c) vs Justin Gaethje
- UFC Women’s Strawweight Championship: Rose Namajunas (C) vs Carla Esparza
- Michael Chandler vs Tony Ferguson
- Tracy Cortez vs Melissa Cortez
- Mauricio Rua vs Ovince Saint Preux
- Donald Cerrone vs Joe Lauzon
- Blagoy Ivanov vs Marcos Rogerio De Lima
- Macy Chiasson vs Norma Dumont
- Randy Brown vs Khaos Williams
- Francisco Trinaldo vs Danny Roberts
- Kleidison Rodrigues vs CJ Vergara
- Ariane Carnelossi vs Loopy Godinez
- Brandon Royval vs Matt Schnell
- Journey Newson vs Fernie Garcia
Now, on to this weekend where UFC 274 hits our screens on Saturday night from the terribly named Footprint Center in downtown Phoenix, Arizona. The home of the Phoenix Suns will see one of the best UFC cards of the year, with two titles on the line in front of what’s expected to be a sold out arena.
It’s not just the headline fights that make this card must-watch though, this card is stacked top to bottom.
First up, two gnarly veterans will go head to head as Donald “The Cowboy” Cerrone, always a fan favourite, takes on Joe Lauzon who returns after a 32 month hiatus. Lauzon has been on the UFC roster for 16 years, and this will be his 44th career fight, and 28th under the UFC banner. Cerrone has been with the company for 15 years, though the first four of them were spent in the old WEC. This is his 55th career fight, the 48th with the company and 39th under the UFC banner. The UFC can never complain that they haven’t got value for money from these two. This fight isn’t for a title, winning it won’t lead to a title shot, but it will be two lads who just love a scrap having a fight in a cage on a Saturday night.
Next, a true legend of the sport will take to the cage. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua will meet Ovince Saint-Preux in a rematch of their 2014 clash. OSP won by KO that night and Shogun will be seeking revenge as he looks to put the finishing touches on his Hall of Fame career. Many may not be aware of Shogun’s past greatness but for those of us who were lucky enough to see him fight in Pride know what an incredible fight he was. The pre-knee injuries Shogun was a different type of beast and remains legendary.
Then, as if this card wasn’t strong enough already, there is a Lightweight contest that could end up being the fight of the year. Former three time Bellator Lightweight Champion Michael Chandler, coming off back to back defeats by the two men in the main event, will take on former interim UFC Lightweight Champion Tony Ferguson. Ferguson himself is on a three fight losing streak, having also lost to both headliners as well as Beneil Dariush in his last fight. Neither of these fighters know what it is to take a step backwards so, as with Cerrone vs Lauzon, this will be a good old fashioned Saturday night fist fight on a Saturday night.
We move on to the co-main event of the evening, where “Thug” Rose Namajunas makes the second defense of her Women’s Strawweight Championship against Carla Esparza. Esparza was the first UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion and she defeated Namajunas by submission to claim the title almost eight years ago. She lost the title seven years ago to Joanna Jedrzejczyk and has been patiently waiting for another crack at the title.
Namajunas is in her second reign as Champion. She ended Jedrzejczyk’s two and a half year reign, beat her in the rematch but then lost to Jessica Andrade her second defense. She regained the title by defeating Zhang Weili, who had beaten Andrade. She beat the Chinese fighter again in her first defense of the belt and will now be aiming to go one better than her first reign by having a second successful title defense.
Last, but certainly not least, is the headline act. UFC Lightweight Champion Charles Oliveira taking on former UFC interim Lightweight Champion Justin Gaethje. Oliveira is on a 10 fight win streak, while Gaethje has won five of his last six with his only defeat coming to Khabib Nurmagomedev, who may well be the greatest fighter in UFC history and is certainly the best lightweight of all time.
Oliveira has one of the most unexpected rises in UFC history. In his first seven years, he fought 17 times and was a mediocre mid-card fighter with a record of nine wins and eight defeats. Since losing to Paul Felder in December of 2017 he has gone on an absolute tear. He recommitted himself to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and used his brilliant ground game as the foundation of this incredible run he’s put together.
Gaethje is one of the stranger fighters in the UFC. A brilliant wrestler, he has often ignored his own background to engage in slugfests and that has, against Eddie Alvarez and Dustin Poirier, cost him. Defeats to those two set him back and forced him to refocus. He still prefers to stand and throw, but is more willing to take fights to the ground when he needs to. He will likely want to keep this one standing, because of Oliviera’s submission prowess.
This card will not disappoint, stay up late and enjoy.
No matter where you are, you can use your Liberty Shield VPN to find a way to watch UFC 274. Don’t have a Liberty Shield VPN? You’re missing out! Click right here to check out what we can offer you, and use the code EPL25 to get a 25% OFF a VPN or VPN Router at check-out.
How to watch UFC 274 from anywhere…
UFC 274 will be streamed live on BT Sport as well as their respective apps for iPhone, iPad, Android, Smart TV, Now TV, FireTV etc.
But these streaming services are not available to everyone, for example when you load BT Sport in the USA, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, France, Spain, Portugal, Australia, Dubai, Canada etc. you will get an error message.
Sorry, this video is not available in your country.
This is basically because their streaming services are geoblocked based on the IP address being used to access it. You must be a UK domestic web user to access BT Sport, Sky Sports, Amazon Prime UK and BBC Sport live tv streaming.
- Get a UK IP address for UFC 274
- If you want to watch on your Windows PC, Mac, FireTV, iPhone, iPad or Android then you can get a UK Proxy or VPN Apps from Liberty Shield, FREE for 48 hours and then from only £8.99 per month..
- Prefer to watch on supported media streaming devices like Now TV, Smart TVs, Apple TV, Xbox, PS4, Roku etc? You’ll need a UK configured VPN Router setup as British, available from only £9.99 with Worldwide Shipping available.
How can I watch UFC 274 live?
BT Sport will be showing all the action from the event on BT Sport 1. In the United States, viewers will have to pay up to $70 (£52.99) for the event. In the UK though, BT Sport will show the fights to subscribers at no extra cost. The preliminary show will get underway at 1am with the main event will begin at 3am, which will also be shown on BT Sport 1.
BT Sport typically show football games in the weekly Saturday lunchtime slot but they do show additional matches. You can sign up for a BT Sport subscription or pick up a contract-free BT Sport monthly pass for £25.
BT Sport will also carry coverage of the UEFA Champions’ League and Europa League until 2024. Subscribers can watch BT Sport on their computers as well as their various apps on connected devices. They do offer a Monthly Pass with no contract, which will give customers access to the BT Sport mobile app.
Remember that BT Sport also features coverage from the Ligue 1 for Messi at PSG, and holds rights to Moto GP, UFC and WWE coverage as well. After a long delay the BT Sport app is now available on several models of Smart TV as well as Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices.
Furthermore; BT Sport isn’t the only geographically-censored streaming services a VPN or Proxy will allow you to access. Other UK services like Sky Sports, Amazon Prime, BBC iPlayer, ITV Hub, All 4 and BritBox are available. Plus with the option to switch to our USA service whenever you like, you can access Hulu, HBO GO, Netflix and Pandora. Essentially you can access international content from virtually anywhere!
