Josh Emmett is still recovering following his devastating UFC Interim Featherweight title loss to Yair Rodriguez at UFC 284. There was concern for the 40-year-old once his follow-up bout against Ilia Topuria resulted in another loss. However, Emmett rebounded nicely with a TKO win over Bryce Mitchell at UFC 296.
Currently, Emmett’s record stands at 19 wins and 4 losses. Emmett is number eight in the UFC divisional rankings. But the UFC veteran has a tall task in front of as he’ll be facing a fighter who comes in undefeated.
Lerone Murphy is another exciting prospect coming off back-to-back wins over veterans Edson Barboza and Dan Ige. The featherweight has managed to score seven wins since he made his UFC debut in 2019, with a draw against Zubaira Tukhugov being the only blemish on his record. Murphy’s record currently stands at 15 wins, 0 losses, and 1 draw. His divisional ranking is ten.
In the co-main event, Joanderson Brito is coming in with a much needed win. He suffered a split decision loss to William Gomis. That killed Brito’s five-fight winning streak that he had going into the bout. Still, the featherweight has won five out of his last six fights, with those coming by way of submission or TKO. Brito’s record stands at 17 wins, 4 losses, and 1 no contest.
Pat Sabatini is looking to continue building momentum following his impressive win over Jonathan Pearce in October. Since his UFC debut in 2021, Sabatini has won six out of his eight fights, with three of them ending via submission. Sabatini’s record stands at 19 wins and 5 losses.
Check out the full line-up below:
UFC on ESPN 65 main card
MAIN CARD (ESPN/ESPN+, 9 p.m. ET)
- Josh Emmett vs. Lerone Murphy
- Joanderson Brito vs. Pat Sabatini
- ChangHo Lee vs. Cortavious Romious
- Gerald Meerschaert vs. Brad Tavares
- Luis Gurule vs. Ode Osbourne
- Torrez Finney vs. Rob Valentin
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN/ESPN+, 6 p.m. ET)
- Davey Grant vs. Daniel Santos
- Dione Barbosa vs. Diana Belbita
- Daniel Frunza vs. Rhys McKee
- Loma Lookboonmee vs. Istela Nunes
- Pedro Falcao vs. Victor Henry
- Martin Buday vs. Uran Satybaldiev
- Talita Alencar vs. Vanessa Demopoulos