On Wednesday, ESPN announced their nominations for their annual ESPY awards show and four UFC fighters received nominations. Champions Jon Jones, Leon Edwards, Islam Makhachev, and the recently retired Amanda Nunes each received nominations.
Jones and Edwards were nominated in two categories. Including being nominated for Best MMA Fighter, Jones made the list for Best Comeback Athlete and Edwards for Best Championship Performance.
At UFC 285, Jones returned after a three-year layoff to quickly defeat Ciryl Gane in the first round to capture the vacant UFC heavyweight title and become a two-division UFC champion.
Edwards won the UFC welterweight championship in dramatic fashion by knocking out former titleholder Kamaru Usman in the fifth round of the UFC 278 main event in 2022. He defended the title in a rematch against Usman six months later at 286.
Nunes, who many consider the greatest fighter off all time, female or male, retired after defending her 135-pound championship against Irene Aldana at UFC 289 on June 10.
Makhachev won the lightweight championship by quickly taking out Charles Oliveira at UFC 280 this past October. He defended the belt against featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski in February.
The ESPY awards show began in 1993. This year’s show takes place July 12 in Los Angeles.
Four UFC fighters receive ESPY nominations
