When is the UFC 263 press conference?
UFC 263 event is four days away. All the fighters competing on the card will interact with each other and members of the press during the pre-fight press conference that will go live at 4PM PT/ 7PM ET on June 10, 2021 at the Arizona Federal Theatre.
Indian fans interested in watching the press conference will have to sacrifice sleep as it will stream live at 4:30AM IST on June 11, 2021.
The pay-per-view event featuring two title fights and 11 non-title fights will be broadcast live from the Gila River Arena in Glendale, Arizona on June 12, 2021.
UFC 263: Adesanya vs Vettori 2 - What's at stake?
In the main event of UFC 263, Israel Adesanya (20-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) will attempt the third defense of his UFC middleweight title against No.3 ranked Marvin Vettori (17-4-1D MMA, 7-2-1D UFC).
The fight is a rematch of their 2018 clash that Adesanya won by split decision. The champ will enter the fight after suffering the first loss of his MMA career against 205lbs champion Jan Blachowicz back in March. Meanwhile, Marvin Vettori has won five straight since losing to Adesanya. His last fight was a unanimous decision win over Kevin Holland in April 2021.
UFC 263 will be co-headlined by another rematch. UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo (20-1-1D MMA, 9-1-1D UFC) will attempt his second defense of the title against No.1 ranked Brendan Moreno in an immediate title fight rematch.
The pair last competed against each other in a fight of the year contender at UFC 256 in December 2020. The bout was rendered a unanimous decision draw as the champ was deducted one point due to an illegal groin shot in the third round.
No.3 ranked welterweight Leon Edwards will fight Stockton's own Nate Diaz in the first-ever non-title five-round undercard fight at UFC 263. Undefeated since losing to current champion Kamaru Usman in 2015, Leon Edwards has put together a formidable winning streak in the division. However, he does not have a big name under his belt in the UFC so far. The fight against Diaz heavily favors the much younger and natural welterweight Leon Edwards.
However, Diaz is one of the biggest pay-per-view stars and a win over him will put Edwards in a position to campaign for a title shot. Originally booked for UFC 262 on May 15, the bout was rescheduled for UFC 263 after Nate Diaz suffered an injury during his training camp.
The main card will also feature a welterweight showdown between BJJ ace Demian Maia (28-10 MMA, 21-10 UFC) and No.12 ranked Belal Muhammad (18-3-1NC MMA, 9-3-1NC UFC). Muhammad's last fight against Leon Edwards ended in a no contest after the former was rendered unable to continue due to an accidental eye poke.
The event will also feature some interesting fights. The lightweight contest between Drew Dober and Bradd Riddell will be the featured prelim of the bout. UFC 263 will also welcome the youngest fighter to sign a UFC contract, Chase Hooper, for a featherweight fight against Steven Peterson during the early prelims.