UFC Kansas City Start Time, Who Is Fighting Tonight!

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is set to stage a special event later TONIGHT (Sat., April 15, 2023) inside T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri. Headlining the event will be a Featherweight bout between former division champion, Max Holloway, and top contender, Arnold Allen. In the co-main event, Edson Barboza will battle Billy Quarantillo in another pivotal 145-pound bout.

What’s Hot:

We don’t want to go as far as saying that Max Holloway’s championship (and best) days are behind him, because he can still make another run at the title. Still, one can’t deny that a longtime former champion does lose some of that aura, that mystique they carry when they are champion. It’s normal, especially when the current champion has beaten you three times already. A former champ’s career, at times, can go on a downward spiral once the belt is no longer around his or her waist, just look at Anderson Silva. But “Blessed” did win two tough fights against Calvin Kattar and Yair Rodriguez when he suffered his second defeat to Alexander Volkanovski, and now he is looking to bounce back one more time after suffering his latest setback at the hands of “The Great.” Holloway is still ranked No. 2, so if he gets a big win over Allen and Rodriguez happens to defeat Volkanovski at UFC 290, then “Blessed” could very well get another shot at the strap. In short, the Hawaiian-born scrapper has a lot riding on the line here, especially after these bizarre comments.

I like to call Arnold Allen the Rodney Dangerfield of mixed martial arts (MMA) because the man gets no respect. Okay, so that may not be entirely true, he does get props for his impressive 12-fight win streak, but you would think he would get more of it after going undefeated (10-0) inside the Octagon. Yet, it seems he is never mentioned in the same circles as Brian Ortega, Rodriguez, Holloway, Josh Emmett and “The Korean Zombie.” But Allen is determined to take it by notching the biggest win of his career against a former champion and future UFC Hall of Famer. Allen’s first and only loss came over a decade ago, so the man isn’t used to coming up on the losing end. All he does is win, and “Almighty” has a well-rounded attack that can give anyone fits. If this fight took place four years ago, I’d say Allen would have been in way over his head. But, let’s face it, Holloway isn’t exactly the same fighter he was back then, even though he still has the chops to make some noise. This is a massive opportunity for Allen to truly make a name for himself and make some waves in the 145-pound division because if he wins, there is no one ahead of him that deserves the winner of Volkanovski vs. Rodriguez more.

What’s Not:

Pedro Munhoz’s last win came in Feb. 2021 and he’s 1-4-1 since 2019, a record that would get most fighters cut from the bloated UFC roster. His opponent, Chris Gutierrez, on the other hand, is 7-1-1 inside the Octagon and unbeaten in his last eight fights, so this is another one of those head-scratching bookings. But that falls on Gutierrez and his team because I would have been lobbying for someone on a win streak as opposed to a struggling fighter. Munhoz is a high risk fight for “El Guapo” because though he is on a slump, he has the skill and ability to turn it around at anytime because his experience inside the cage is very impressive, facing off against the likes of Aljamain Sterling, Frankie Edgar, Jose Aldo, Dominic Cruz and Sean O’Malley over the last three years.

Original Card vs. Actual Card:

A Heavyweight fight between Jake Collier and Martin Buday was scheduled for this event but was ultimately rescheduled for a later date for undisclosed reasons. They will now face off at the upcoming UFC Vegas 72 fight card on April 29, 2023.

Injuries:

No injuries reported for this event.

New Blood:

Bruna Brasil will put her seven-fight win streak on the line when she makes her official UFC debut against Denis Gomes, who is coming off a loss at the hands of Konklak Suphisara in her own UFC debut last September. Brasil earned her spot on the big show with an impressive technical knockout (TKO) win on the Contender Series. Gomez was on a six-fight win streak prior to her first loss, so this fight is still very likely to be competitive between two surging contenders.

Former Bellator MMA contender, Gaston Bolanos, will be fighting for just his second-promotion ever as a pro after he opted to jump ship following his win over Daniel Carey exactly a year ago today. In the five years with the Viacom-owned promotion, Bolanos only managed to fight nine times to earn a 6-3 record. He will face Aaron Phillips, who was last seen losing to Jack Shore almost three years ago, which is an awful long time to be on the sidelines.

How The ‘Prelims’ Look:

Kicking off the undercard is a women’s catchweight fight between Joselyne Edwards and Lucie Pudilova. Edwards missed weight by half a pound, and will now be forced to give up a percentage of her fight purse to her foe.

In Lightweight action, Lando Vannata will face Daniel Zellhuber. Vannata has never won more than two fights straight inside the Octagon during his seven-year run with the promotion, earning a very subpar record of 4-6-2. The reason he’s been able to prolong his UFC career is because he brings it each time out. He will attempt to keep Zellhuber win-less inside the Octagon after “Golden Boy” came up short in his UFC debut in Sept. 2022.

Piera Rodriguez will look to remain undefeated when she goes for consecutive win number 10 against Gillian Robertson. Rodriguez is 2-0 under the UFC banner with wins over Kay Hansen and Sam Hughes. Robertson, on the other hand, has been fighting for the promotion for 5.5 years and is just 2-3 in her last five fights.

After 17 years with the promotion, Ed Herman is still going strong. Sure, “Short Fuse” is coming off a loss to Alonzo Menifield, but prior to that he was on a three-fight win streak. He will look to get back on track when he takes on Zak Cummings in a Light Heavyweight affair. Cummings is coming off a win over Alessio Di Chirico but is just 2-3 in his previous five. Neither of these two men will likely ever be title contenders at this stage of their UFC careers, so a win simply assures the victor he lives to fight another day inside the world-famous Octagon.

With Brandon Moreno lined up to defend his title against Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 290, the winner of the 125-pound bout between Matheus Nicolau and Brandon Royval could very well get the next shot at the title. After all, Nicolau is on a six-fight win streak and is ranked No. 5, while Royval is holding firm at No. 4.

Bill Algeo and T.J. Brown will headline the undercard in a 145-pound bout. Algeo is coming off a loss to Andre FIli, which is just his second loss in two years. Brown — who is 3-1 in his previous four fights inside the Octagon — is coming off a win over Erik Silva in Dec. 2022.

Who Needs A Win Badly:

As I mentioned earlier, Pedro Munhoz’s last win came three years ago, but with a record of 1-4-1 coming into the event, if he comes up short in his fourth straight fight inside the Octagon I would not be too shocked if he gets cut with a loss. Because as we learned just this week with the promotion releasing Cynthia Calvillo, the promotion isn’t opposed to letting go of fighters who were contenders and promising prospects once upon a time.

Interest Level: 7/10

Edson Barboza is currently on a two-fight losing streak coming into his fight against Billy Quarantillo (preview here). Barboza is still considered one of the most feared strikers in the game by some, but there are those that feel he has lost some of that aura that once made him a killer inside the cage. Still, he can flip the switch and turn anyone’s lights out if he finds that sweet spot. Quarantillo is coming off a knockout win over Alexander Hernandez and is on the hunt for his first two-fight win streak in three years.

Dustin Jacoby was on a nice run of 8-0-1 before Khalil Rountree narrowly defeated him via split-decision in Oct. 2022. Now, he looks to pick up the pieces against Azamat Murzakanov, who is undefeated at 12-0 (2-0 UFC). A win for Murzakanov over Jacoby would up his stock and cause some ripples at 205 pounds.

In further Light Heavyweight action, Ion Cutelaba will look to avoid a possible pink slip by staying clear of his fourth straight loss when he goes up against Tanner Boser. Cutelaba is as exciting and intense as they come, but he needs a win in the worst way, especially since he has been stopped in his previous three defeats. Boser, meanwhile, is 1-3 in his last four UFC fights so he needs an impressive showing — and a win — to get a new lease on his combat life.

UFC’s iron man, Clay Guida, will compete in fight number 35 inside the Octagon, which is mind-boggling. He has alternated wins and loss over the last three years, which is the story of his UFC career, and that’s being consistent…for better or worse. He is in for a tough battle against Mexican-born fighter, Rafa Garcia, who is an impressive 3-1 in his last four fights and can match “The Carpenter’s” pace. A win over Guida would be a nice notch on “Gifted’s” belt, but Guida is also eying his first back-to-back wins in over six years.

Enjoy the fights!

Full UFC Kansas City Fight Card:

UFC Kansas City Main Event On ESPN/ESPN+:

145 lbs.: Max Holloway vs. Arnold Allen

UFC Kansas City Main Card On ESPN/ESPN+ (8:30 p.m. ET):

145 lbs.: Edson Barboza vs. Billy Quarantillo
205 lbs.: Dustin Jacoby vs. Azamat Murzakanov
205 lbs.: Tanner Boser vs. Ion Cutelaba
135 lbs.: Pedro Munhoz vs. Chris Gutierrez
155 lbs.: Rafa Garcia vs. Clay Guida

UFC Kansas City Prelims On ESPN/ESPN+ (5:30 p.m. ET):

145 lbs.: TJ Brown vs. Bill Algeo
125 lbs.: Brandon Royval vs. Matheus Nicolau
205 lbs.: Zak Cummings vs. Ed Herman
115 lbs.: Piera Rodriguez vs. Gillian Robertson
155 lbs.: Lando Vannata vs. Daniel Zellhuber
115 lbs.: Bruna Brasil vs. Denise Gomes
135 lbs.: Gaston Bolanos vs. Aaron Phillips
135 lbs.: Joselyne Edwards vs. Lucie Pudilova

*Fight card, bout order and number of fights remain subject to change.*

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MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Kansas City fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the ESPN/ESPN+ preliminary card bouts at 5:30 p.m. ET, followed by the ESPN/ESPN+ main card start time at 8:30 p.m. ET.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC Kansas City news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archives here and here. For the updated and finalized “Holloway vs. Allen” fight card and ESPN/ESPN+ lineup click here.