On July 29, UFC fans all over the world should be glued to their television screens to watch what appears to be the best fight card of the year. UFC 214 possesses two championship fights that UFC fans have been wanting to see for a long time. Fans have the opportunity to watch Lightweight powerhouse Tyron Woodley defend his title against submission specialist Demian Maia as well as the most anticipated fight of the year: Jones vs. Cornier 2. However, UFC 214 also has several fights between high-quality opponents that have flown completely under the radar. The PPV main card also features former UFC Welterweight champion Robbie Lawler who will be fighting against UFC legend Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone. Any of these three fights could easily have been the main event on any UFC fight card. In my opinion, the fact that all three of these fights are on one fight card makes the $49.99 price tag completely worth it.
The main event of UFC 214 is the long-awaited rematch of Jon Jones and current Light Heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier. The first installment of this rivalry took place on January 3, 2015 where Jones defended his Light Heavyweight belt successfully against Cormier in a five round decision at UFC 182. However, a lot has changed since that fight which helps explain how Cormier currently has the belt despite losing to Jones.
In April of 2015, Jones turned himself in to police after a hit-and-run incident that he was allegedly involved in the previous day in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Later that month, the UFC stripped Jones of his championship belt and Jones was suspended indefinitely. Jones, eventually, was reinstated by the UFC and was given an opportunity to regain his championship belt at UFC 197 against Ovince Saint Preux where he won in a unanimous decision. All appeared back to normal and Jones was poised to be the face of the UFC again. Jones was expected to defend his belt at UFC 200 in a rematch against Cormier on July 9, 2016. However, prior to the fight, Jones failed a USADA drug test and was suspended for a year by the United States Anti-Doping Agency.
At long last, it appears that Jones and Cormier 2 is finally going to happen. Jones, when healthy, has won 22 of his 23 career fights and could potentially be the greatest UFC fighter of all-time. However, Jones has not fought in over a year and one has to question how rusty he will be against a world class opponent in Daniel Cormier.
While Jones was suspended by the UFC, Cormier remained focused on capturing the UFC Light Heavyweight belt. In order to receive another title shot, Cormier had to defeat knockout specialist Anthony “Rumble” Johnson twice as well as Light Heavyweight contender Alexander Gustafsson. Cormier, the 2001 Runner-up in NCAA Division I wrestling, has won 19 of his 20 MMA fights and has used his wrestling expertise to submit six of his opponents.
After defeating Gustafsson, Cormier was given a shot at the title before Dana White, the President of the UFC, told him about Jones’ failed drug test. Instead, Cormier decided to remain on the UFC 200 fight card voluntarily and defeated UFC legend Anderson Silva instead. Cormier has been waiting a long time for this opportunity to fight Jones again and I expect him to make the most of it.
It is very rare that two fighters actually despise each other when they are about to fight. Unlike Mayweather and McGregor, these fighters actually cannot stand each other and have even exchanged blows in pre-fight press conferences in the past. Jones believes that Cormier has no right to be considered champion because Cormier lost to him in the past and Cormier hates Jones for consistently getting into legal trouble which prevented this rematch from occurring over a year ago.
Regardless of who wins this fight, expect a bloodbath. This fight has “Fight of the Year” written all over it and I expect this fight to be a nail-biter all the way to the judges’ scorecards. Personally, this fight has me extremely torn. Jones used to be my favorite fighter but after all the legal drama, I simply dislike him as a person and cannot see myself rooting for him. On the other hand, I used to think Cormier was a boring fighter but he has done everything possible to regain the championship belt and I respect him for that. For those reasons, I guess I am rooting for Cormier.
As for my fight prediction, I gotta side with Jones. Jones looks ready for the contest and has handled Cormier’s elite wrestling before. I think Jones wins in a split decision due to his takedown defense and elite striking.
UFC 214: Fight Time, TV Channel & Viewing Details
Event: UFC 214: Jones vs Cormier 2
Date: Saturday, July 29, 2017
PPV Main Card Time: 10:00 P.M. EST
FXX Main Card Time: 8:00 P.M. EST
UFC Fight Pass Prelims Time: 6:00 P.M.
Location: Honda Center in Anaheim, California
Broadcast: PPV, UFC Fight Pass, FXX
How To Watch UFC 214 Online & Mobile
The UFC 214 Main Card will begin at 10:00 P.M. EST and can be watched online via PPV. It will cost $49.99 and is available on one’s mobile devices as well as televisions via cable subscription.
UFC Fight Pass
The first UFC 214 preliminary fight card begins at 6:00 PM EST and can be watched online with UFC Fight Pass on UFC.TV. It’s a subscription service which offers one-month, six-month and 12-month subscription options to Fight Pass. Alternatively, we suggest starting a free trial which expires in 30 days. The other preliminary fights will air on FXX starting at 8:00 PM.
UFC.TV App
Mobile users are able to watch the first preliminary card on the free UFC app (iTunes Store| Google Play Store). Watching it on the app this way requires a UFC Fight Pass subscription. See above for more information on that.
FXNOW app
Similarly, mobile user can watch the second preliminary card but this time using the FXNOW app (iTunes Store | Google Play Store | Amazon Store | Windows). You’ll need a cable subscription though, like you would watching it on your desktop.
Sling TV
Sling TV is a service that allows subscribers to watch live and on-demand TV channels on TVs, computer or mobile device. It’s just like a cable or satellite TV service, except it’s delivered over the internet. You can sign up for Sling TV’s free 7-day trial. If you cancel your subscription within seven days, you will not be charged. Once signed up, simply download the app for your computer or mobile device to start watching.
MMAStreams via Reddit
Your other option is to visit MMAStreams on Reddit to see if you can find a stream for this event.
UFC 214 Fight Card
Main Card (10:00 P.M. EST on PPV)
Light Heavyweight: Daniel Cormier (c) vs. Jon Jones
Welterweight: Tyron Woodley (c) vs. Demian Maia
Women’s Featherweight: Cristiane Justino vs. Tonya Evinger
Welterweight: Robbie Lawler vs. Donald Cerrone
Light Heavyweight: Jimi Manuwa vs. Volkan Oezdemir
Prelims (8:00 P.M. EST on FXX)
Featherweight: Andre Fili vs. Calvin Kattar
Featherweight: Brian Ortega vs. Renato Moicano
Catchweight (140 lbs): Aljamain Sterling vs. Renan Barão
Featherweight: Ricardo Lamas vs. Jason Knight
Prelims (6:00 P.M. EST on UFC Fight Pass)
Heavyweight: Dmitrii Smoliakov vs. Adam Wieczorkowski
Lightweight: Josh Burkman vs. Drew Dober
Flyweight: Eric Shelton vs. Jarred Brooks
Women’s Strawweight: Kailin Curran vs. Alexandra Albu
