How incredible UFC 300 fight card could look with Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey making sensational returns
THE UFC is fast approaching another major milestone in its near 30-year history.
Mixed martial arts’ premier promotion will celebrate its thirtieth anniversary on November 11 with a stacked UFC 295 card at Madison Square Garden in New York.
But as soon as the dust settles at MSG, attention will turn to the promotion’s 300th pay-per-view offering.
Going off their current PPV schedule, UFC 300 is set to take place sometime in April.
Global interest in the historic card is growing each passing week, with MMA fans wondering when the card will be announced.
Casual and die-hard followers of the sport alike are also pondering the same question: Who will headline UFC 300?
The answer to that burning question will soon be revealed.
But that hasn’t stopped SunSport from predicting a stacked main card for the massive event.
Scroll down to see our dream UFC 300 card.
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Conor McGregor vs Michael Chandler
The biggest star in mixed martial arts history, Conor McGregor, is finally on course to make his octagon return after making his long-overdue re-entry to the USADA drug testing pool this month.
Despite their eight-year relationship with USADA coming to an end in December, the UFC brass won’t have McGregor fight any earlier than he would have been permitted to if they continued their partnership with the anti-doping agency.
That means McGregor, at the earliest, will be back in April – a timeline which lines up perfectly for UFC 300.
Former three-time Bellator lightweight champion Michael Chandler was announced as the opponent for McGregor’s comeback fight back in February.
So expect him – barring an insane U-turn from the promotion – to be the man standing across from The Notorious if the former two-division champion tops the bill.
Sean Strickland vs Khamzat Chimaev
Undefeated phenom Khamzat Chimaev, who rose to prominence on Fight Island, is one fight away from competing in his first UFC title bout.
The Chechen clubber faces former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman in a middleweight title eliminator in the co-main event of UFC 294 on Saturday night.
UFC president Dana White has already anointed the winner of the Abu Dhabi dust-up as the next challenger for the 185lbs strap.
So, provided he has no travel restrictions, it would make all the sense in the world for the promotion to put him against newly-crowned middleweight king Sean Strickland on their historic card.
Sean O’Malley vs Marlon Vera
Sean O’Malley‘s star power was well and truly apparent before he became the king of the bantamweights.
But it reached new heights after he knocked out Aljamain Sterling in August, with the promotion’s official video of the knockout racking up a whopping 9.8million views in just over a month.
‘Suga’ is undoubtedly the best-placed fighter to become the face of the UFC once McGregor hangs up his gloves.
So it would be foolish not to have his slated title defence against Marlon Vera – who stopped him three years ago – feature on what promises to be the biggest card of 2024.
Tom Aspinall vs Sergei Pavlovich
The future of the heavyweight title is well and truly up in the air, despite it being on the line next month at MSG.
Champion Jon Jones, who claimed the belt in March with a flawless victory over Ciryl Gane, has hinted his clash with Stipe Miocic will be his retirement fight.
And former titleholder Miocic could very well call it a day after the fight.
Surging Brit Tom Aspinall and Russian wrecking machine Sergei Pavlovich, the No.4 and No.2 ranked heavyweights, are currently waiting for the dust to settle on what promises to be an iconic night at The World’s Most Famous Arena.
And it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that the UFC opts to keep the division moving by booking the pair in a title fight, which would feature nicely on their UFC 300.
Ronda Rousey vs Miesha Tate III
Despite recent insistence to the contrary from White, a return for former women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey continues to be mooted.
The first female fighter in UFC history is currently a free agent after the expiration of her WWE contract.
Given the nature of her departure from the sport, it’s long been assumed that fighting again is far from the mind of Rousey.
But stranger things, like Brock Lesnar‘s shock return at UFC 200 in July 2016, have happened.
So don’t completely rule out the prospect of her strapping on her gloves for one last hurrah. An opponent similar in age would make the most sense for the unlikely return of ‘Rowdy’
So why not pit her against long-time rival Miesha Tate, who could perform a quick turnaround if she gets through her December clash with Julia Avila?