Is there a UFC fight on New Years Eve?
By Rami Hanna
The time that leads up to New Year's Eve is often spent gathering up your family or friends over to your place, grabbing snacks, and reflecting on how you spent 2023 and all the goals you achieved. It's all about looking forward to accomplishing the new goals that you have in mind for the new year.
New Year's Eve will land on a Sunday so if you're a fan of football, you'll have a full lineup that entire day heading into the final hour of 2023 on the East Coast. If you're a fan of basketball, there will be several games that day, but if you're not a fan of either and you're looking for a fight to watch then you're most likely searching for that here on FanSided MMA.
The answer to that question is, unfortunately, and understandably, no. The UFC allows their fighters and staff to enjoy the holidays with their family and/or friends for both Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Eve.
RIZIN holds a New Years Eve card in Japan every year, so watch out for details on that.
When is the first UFC card in the New Year happening?
The UFC kicks off 2024 with a headliner at the UFC APEX in a rematch between Magomed Ankalaev vs. Johnny Walker, the pair previously met at UFC 294 where an illegal knee from Ankalaev to Walker's head rendered him unable to continue and was ruled a no-contest between the two fighters. They will now have the opportunity to get the upper hand against each other.
The co-main event for this card will feature a rematch in the flyweight division when Mattheus Nicolau stands across the octagon from Manel Kape, the two fought in 2021 where Nicolau won the bout via split decision. Since then, Nicolau had his six-fight streak snapped this past April by Brandon Royval and Kape is on a four-fight winning streak as he looks to avenge his loss against Nicolau.
The UFC's first card of the New Year does feature prominent UFC stars and vets competing such as Ketlen Viera, Jim Miller, Macy Chiasson, Ricky Simon, Phil Hawes, Mario Bautista, Andrei Arlovski, and many more. The card will take place at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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