Overview

• Both fighters made weight at Friday’s official session (Du Plessis 185 lbs, Chimaev 183 lbs), locking in tonight’s middleweight title clash at Chicago’s United Center.
• A tense final faceoff ended in a shove and a hot-mic threat from Chimaev warning Du Plessis “you’ve got two days to hold that belt.”
• Analysts are split over Du Plessis’s ability to survive Chimaev’s early wrestling pressure and capitalize in the later rounds.
• Betting markets opened with Chimaev at –220 and Du Plessis at +180 as ESPN+ PPV prepares to air the 10 p.m. ET main card following early prelims on ESPN and Disney+.
• The stacked card also features Aaron Pico’s UFC debut against Lerone Murphy in the co-main, along with Neal vs. Prates and Cannonier vs. Page on the main card.