After three years away from the Octagon, Jon Jones makes his return, now at heavyweight, and is fighting for the belt. The UFC 285 live stream pay-per-view will be on ESPN+, and is sure to rake in a massive profit. Opposite Jones is top-contender Ciryl Gane who lost his first bid for the championship last January against the now-released Francis Ngannou. Of course, the attraction for UFC 285 doesn’t stop there. In the co-headliner, Valentina Shevchenko, the pound-for-pound top women’s fighter eyes her eighth successful title defense. To secure it, she’ll have to hold off the challenge of sixth-ranked women’s flyweight contender Alexa Grasso.
UFC 285 Live Stream Details
- When: Saturday, March 4, 2023
- Early Preliminary Start Time: 6:15 p.m. ET / 3:15 p.m. PT
- Preliminary Start Time: 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT
- Main Card STart Time: 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT
- Location: T-Mobile Arena – Las Vegas, Nevada
- UFC 285 Live Stream: ESPN+ / ESPN+ PPV
The main card at UFC 285 is stacked with both established and rising talents. Shavkat Rakhmonov looks to improve his ranking in the welterweight division, challenging No.7 Geoff Neal. Then there’s Dana White’s Contender Series Season 6 standout Bo Nickal setting the stage in the first contest of the pay-per-view against Jamie Pickett. The preliminary card will force you to your seat early with ranked bouts featuring No.5 middleweight Derek Brunson taking on No.10 Dricus Du Plessis and No.8 women’s flyweight Viviane Araujo hoping to hold back No.9 Amanda Ribas.
Main Event Preview
Jon Jones (26-1-0) hasn’t fought a non-title bout since 2011. Dominating at 205 pounds for a decade, his only losses in that stretch were of the belts that he actually won, once to legal issues in 2015 and more recently due to a failed drug test in 2017. In 2020, after yet another defense of the title that he had reclaimed from vacancy a second time, he vacated the title by choice in pursuit of the heavyweight crown. Legal issues in 2021 around a battery / domestic violence charge put the move on hold, and only speculation can explain 2022. Still, one of the most electrifying talents the sport has seen is back this Saturday, and that’s exciting enough.
Now 35 years old and making his debut at heavyweight, there are a lot of questions about Jones, and the oddsmakers agree. Through all of fight week, he has been the favorite over Ciryl Gane (11-1-0), though around -155 for Jones makes it a near pick’em. Of course, a major reason for the lack of movement could be the public’s belief in Gane, and rightfully so.
The Frenchman is a proven talent at heavyweight, and one needs to look no further than his work in 2022. Though he lost by unanimous decision to Ngannou, it was a close affair. On two of the three scorecards, Gane lost by just one point. He followed that performance up in the fall with a KO of a surging Tai Tuivasa at UFC Paris with punishing kicks and crushing blows. Gane is going to give Jones everything he can handle.
UFC 285 Fight Card and Odds
*Odds subject to change
Main Card
- Jon Jones (-155) vs #1 Ciryl Gane (+135) – Heavyweight Title
- (C) Valentina Shevchenko (-730) vs #6 Alexa Grasso (+530) – Women’s Flyweight Title
- #7 Geoff Neal (+390) vs #10 Shavkat Rakhmonov (-490) – Welterweight
- #7 Mateusz Gamrot (-205) vs #10 Jalin Turner (+175) – Lightweight
- Bo Nickal (-1500) vs Jamie Pickett (+900) – Middleweight
Preliminary Card
- Cody Garbrandt (-170) vs Trevin Jones (+!45) – Bantamweight
- #5 Derek Brunson (+200) vs #10 Dricus Du Plessis (-240) – Middleweight
- #8 Viviane Araujo (+110) vs #9 Amanda Ribas (-130) – Women’s Flyweight
- Julian Marquez (+105) vs Marc-Andre Barriault (-125) – Middleweight
Early Preliminary Card
- Ian Machado Garry (-490) vs Song Kenan (+390) – Welterweight
- Mana Martinez (+210) vs Cameron Saaiman (-250) – Bantamweight
- Jessica Penne (+195) vs Tabatha Ricci (-230) – Women’s Strawweight
- Da’Mon Blackshear (+360) vs Farid Basharat (-450) – Bantamweight
- Esteban Ribovics (+220) vs Loik Radzhabov (-260) – Lightweight
- Kamuela Kirk (–) vs Esteban Ribovics (–) – Lightweight – CANCELED
