UFC on ESPN 19, also known as UFC Vegas 16, and UFC on ESPN: Hermansson vs. Vettori, will be held on December 5, 2020, at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The main event was snake bit. The card was originally scheduled to be headlined by former UFC Welterweight Championship challenger Darren Till vs. Jack Hermansson, at middleweight. Then Till was injured, and replaced by Kevin Holland. Then last week, Holland testing positive for COVID-19, and was replaced by Marvin Vettori. Vettori had been contracted to fight former Strikeforce middleweight champion Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza next week at UFC 256. Now, with Vettori replacing Holland on Saturday, Holland in turn replaces Vettori next week at UFC 256.
In fact, main events at the end of the year during the global pandemic have been snake bit generally. In the last six cards of the year, there have been seven canceled main events. The year was scheduled to close with:
Hermansson vs. Till
Yan vs, Sterling
Chimaev vs. Edwards
Now it closes with:
Hermannson vs Vettori
Figueiredo vs Moreno
Thompson vs Neil
While the main events are diminished, it’s a lot better than nothing, which is what many fans of other Fall and Winter sports are getting.
The weigh-ins stream live on The UnderGround at Noon ET (9:00 a.m. local time), from the APEX.
The Weigh-Ins:
The Faceoffs:
Main Card (ESPN2/ESPN+, 10 p.m. ET)
Jack Hermansson (185.5) vs. Marvin Vettori (186)
Jamahal Hill (205.5) vs. Ovince Saint Preux (207.5)*
Gabriel Benitez (155.5) vs. Justin Jaynes (156)
Montana De La Rosa (125.75) vs. Taila Santos (125.5)
John Allan (205) vs. Roman Dolidze (205)
Movsar Evloev (145.5) vs. Nate Landwehr (145.5)
Prelim Card (ESPN2/ESPN+, 7 p.m. ET)
Jose Quinonez (135) vs. Louis Smolka (134.5)
Jordan Leavitt (155.5) vs. Matt Wiman (155.5)
Cody Durden (125.5) vs. Jimmy Flick (125.5)
Damon Jackson (145) vs. Ilia Topuria (145)
Jake Collier (264.5) vs. Gian Villante (243)
*OSP missed weight for the first time, failing to hit the light heavyweight non-title limit of 206 by 1.5 pounds. He was fined 20 percent of purse; the fight will go on.
The card is regulated by the Nevada Athletic Commission.
