Just three weeks after Daniel Cormier and Stipe Miocic headlined the UFC's most anticipated pay-per-view of 2018, the promotion returns with a Fight Night card that is arguably vying for the same title among those airing on television.
With a trio of attractive bouts atop of the marquee, UFC Fight Night in Calgary (Fox, 8 p.m. ET) has created plenty of anticipation as UFC returns to the Stampede City for just the second time in the promotion's 25-year history.
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Let's take a look at the biggest headlines entering Saturday's card:
1. Violent carnage expected as Eddie Alvarez and Dustin Poirier pick up where they left off. Calgary's main event is a rematch of a lightweight war between top contenders and a former champion that came apart just as fireworks began shoot off in the Octagon at UFC 211 in May 2017. Four minutes into a second round that proved to be one of the most exciting of the year, Alvarez landed a series of knees to the head of Poirier while he was technically still down. Although Alvarez was lucky to come away with a No Contest instead of a disqualification defeat, fans were left wondering what might have been had things played out to completion. And if you need even further reasoning to expect an all-out war on Saturday, remember that both Alvarez and Poirier are fresh off fight-of-the-year contender bouts against action star Justin Gaethje in which both walked through fire before scoring late knockouts. Considering Alvarez has claimed he took Gaethje's unofficial title of "UFC's most violent man" by defeating him, this fight might as well be for the lineal crown.
2. Is it the beginning of the end or just a new beginning for Jose Aldo? There are plenty of questions that need answering for the 31-year-old Brazilian who has already secured his name in history as the first and best champion in UFC featherweight history following a near 10-year run of dominance. Three knockout losses in his last four fights will do that, even if all four were title bouts and the losses came against pound-for-pound stalwarts Conor McGregor and Max Holloway. In between, Aldo silenced any worry by dominantly outpointing Frankie Edgar in their interim title bout at UFC 200. But it has been two years since that fight and it feels even longer. Aldo took tremendous punishment in both losses to Holloway, including when he went out on his shield in their all-action rematch in December. From the standpoint of comparing skills, Aldo should have enough to defeat Jeremy Stephens on Saturday, even with the red-hot run "Lil' Heathen" is currently on. But 31 was also the age the wheels fell off for BJ Penn following back-to-back title defeats against Edgar. If Aldo could ever use a one-sided win to restore faith in the idea of reinvention, the time is now.
3. The return (and possibly last) of the can't miss UFC on Fox cards. After signing a then-landmark deal with Fox worth over $100 million per year in 2011, UFC will begin a new era on ESPN and its ESPN+ streaming app in January. But the best development of UFC's deal with Fox for fans has always been the quarterly cards that were nationally televised in prime time. Beginning with Junior dos Santos' knockout of Cain Velasquez for the heavyweight championship in November 2011, the Fox cards also carried with them an aura of being deliciously close to elite pay-per-view quality yet with a price tag on free TV that is much more appealing. Over time, of course, the level of fights each UFC on Fox card began to suffer as the overall product began to get watered down with so many shows. Many recent shows, in fact, have looked a lot more on paper like their UFC Fight Night counterparts on FS1. But Saturday marks the 30th UFC on Fox show and a noticeable return to being a star-studded event (particularly in the top three bouts although the undercard is far from strong). Will this prove to be the final card of its type that is this level of appointment viewing? That remains to be seen as UFC has just one more Fox card on its schedule for Dec. 15 in Milwaukee with no fights announced as of yet.
4. Tecia Torres gets one more shot at breakthrough victory her career has lacked. A perennial women's strawweight contender who is still just 28, Torres has long been considered solid yet unspectacular when it comes to her standing as a potential title threat. Torres joined UFC as one of the unbeaten favorites entering season 20 of "The Ultimate Fighter" in 2014 having recorded victories in Invicta FC over the likes of Paige VanZant, Felice Herring and current UFC champion Rose Namajunas. Yet each time Torres ran off three-fight win streaks since joining UFC and seemingly positioning herself on the verge of a championship match, losses to Namajunas in their 2016 rematch and Jessica Andrade in February sent the "Tiny Tornado" back where she started. Torres enters Saturday with a golden opportunity to make a large statement, however, when she faces former long-reigning champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk who, herself, is fresh off a pair of surprising title defeats against Namajunas. A victory likely positions Torres exactly where she has wanted to be all along -- next in line for Namajunas in their trilogy fight. A loss, however, would be a harsh reminder that for as good as Torres has looked at times, she may not ever be considered among the very elite.
5. Dana White's birthday gift to the city of Calgary. If you've followed closely the Q&A sessions and public news conferences hosted by the brash UFC president in recent years, you've likely heard White remind UFC fans in Calgary that he owes them one. White, who turns 49 this weekend and plans to spend it inside the Scotiabank Saddledome, has created Saturday's card as, in his words, the "ultimate birthday card" as a way to help fans forget the last time UFC came to Calgary. The year was 2012 and the card in question, UFC 149, quickly went from much anticipated to forgettable thanks to a series of injuries and postponements. Original plans for bouts such as a middleweight title rematch between Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen and a featherweight title defense for Aldo against Erik Koch fell through. Soon after, injuries pulled Michael Bisping, Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Thiago Alves and Yoshihiro Akiyama from the event. What was left was a thin and very forgettable show, headlined by interim bantamweight title win over Urijah Faber, which failed to produce any highlights. In fact, every fight on the main card ended by decision or no contest.
