Check out the latest breaking UFC NEWS
nt"
The UFC makes its sixth stop in Sweden on Saturday with UFC on ESPN+ 11, which takes place at Ericsson Globe in Stockholm and streams on ESPN+.
Sweden’s top fighting representative headlines the card in a battle of former title contenders. Alexander Gustafsson (18-5 MMA, 10-5 UFC) competes on home soil for the fourth time under the UFC banner when he takes on Anthony Smith (31-14 MMA, 7-4 UFC) in a marquee matchup in the light heavyweight division.
That’s not all the card has to offer, though. For more on the numbers, check below for 35 pre-event facts about UFC on ESPN+ 11.
* * * *
Main event
Gustafsson competes in his eighth UFC main event. He’s 3-4 in previous headliners.
Gustafsson is one of seven fighters UFC history to go 0-3 in championship fights. Dan Henderson, Chad Mendes, Kenny Florian, Urijah Faber, Pedro Rizzo and Chael Sonnen have also come up short in three title fights.
Gustafsson’s five knockout victories in UFC light-heavyweight competition are tied for fifth most in divisional history behind Chuck Liddell (nine), Mauricio Rua (eight), Rashad Evans (six) and Thiago Silva (six).
Gustafsson’s nine knockdowns landed in UFC light heavyweight competition are fourth most in divisional history behind Rua (14), Liddell (14), and Lyoto Machida (11).
Smith competes in his fourth consecutive UFC headliner. He’s 2-1 in previous main event appearances.
Smith is 3-1 since he moved up to the UFC light-heavyweight division in June 2018.
Smith is 7-3 since he returned to the UFC for a second stint in February 2016. He’s 14-4 since he was released from the UFC in June 2013.
Smith has earned 29 of his 31 career victories by stoppage. That includes six of his seven UFC wins.
Smith has earned a fight-night bonus in his past two UFC wins.
Co-main event
Volkan Oezdemir’s (15-4 MMA, 3-3 UFC) three-fight losing skid is the longest of his career. He hasn’t earned a victory since July 2017.
Oezdemir is one of six modern-era fighters to earn back-to-back knockouts in less than one minute each. Francis Ngannou, Johnny Walker, Mike Swick, Caio Magalhaes and Ilir Latifi also accomplished the feat.
Ilir Latifi (14-6 MMA, 7-4 UFC) is one of four light heavyweights in UFC history to earn two stoppage victories in less than one minute each. Oezdemir, Walker and also accomplished the feat.
Latifi’s fight vs. Cyrille Diabate at UFC Fight Night 37 marked the first fight in UFC history to feature zero combined significant strike attempts.
Remaining main card
Jimi Manuwa’s (17-5 MMA, 6-5 UFC) three-fight losing skid is the longest of his career. He hasn’t earned a victory since March 2017
Manuwa has earned all but one of his career victories by stoppage. He’s finished 11 of those wins in Round 1.
Manuwa is the only fighter in UFC history to earn two consecutive victories by stoppage at the 5:00 mark of a round.
Manuwa is the only fighter in UFC history with three victories due to an opponent’s injury.
Manuwa lands 54.2 percent of his significant strike attempts in UFC light heavyweight competition, the third best rate among active fights in the weight class behind Nikita Krylov (57.6 percent) and Jon Jones (57.3 percent).
Aleksandar Rakic (11-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) enters the event on an 11-fight winning streak. He hasn’t suffered a defeat since his MMA debut in October 2011.
Rakic’s three-fight UFC winning streak in light heavyweight competition is tied for the second longest active streak in the division behind Dominick Reyes (five).
Rakic is one of six fighters in UFC history to earn a knockout stemming from a spinning backfist. He accomplished the feat at UFC 231.
Rakic landed 78 significant ground strikes at UFC Fight Night 134, the single-fight record for a UFC light heavyweight bout.
Makwan Amirkhani (14-3 MMA, 4-1 UFC) competes for just the second time since March 2017.
Amirkhani’s eight-second knockout of Andy Ogle at UFC on FOX 14 is tied for the fifth-fastest knockout in UFC history.
Amirkhani’s eight-second finish of Ogle stands as the fastest debut win UFC/WEC featherweight history. It’s also tied for the second fastest knockout in combined divisional history.
Amirkhani became the first featherweight fighter in UFC history to earn a victory without throwing or landing a single strike when he submitted Masio Fullen at UFC Fight Night 69.
Amirkhani absorbs just 1.6 significant strikes per minute in UFC featherweight competition, the third best rate in divisional history behind Rani Yahya (1.05) and Mirsad Bektic (1.42).
Chris Fishgold (18-2-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) has earned 15 of his 18 career victories by stoppage. He’s finished 13 of those wins by submission.
Christos Giagos (16-7 MMA, 2-3 UFC) is 1-1 since he returned to the UFC for a second stint in September.
Daniel Teymur (6-3 MMA, 0-3 UFC) three-fight losing skid is the longest of his career. He hasn’t earned a victory since December 2016.
Preliminary card
Leonardo Santos
Leonardo Santos (16-3-1 MMA, 5-0-1 UFC), 39, is the oldest of the 26 fighters scheduled to compete at the event.
Santos returns to competition for the first time since Oct. 8, 2016. The 966-day layoff is the longest of his nearly 17-year career.
Santos’ six-fight unbeaten streak in UFC lightweight competition is tied for the third longest active streak in the division behind Tony Ferguson (11) and Khabib Nurmagomedov (10).
Frank Camacho (21-7 MMA, 1-3 UFC) has earned “Fight of the Night” honors in three of his four UFC appearances.
Darko Stosic (13-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) was successful in his light-heavyweight debut at UFC Fight Night 134 in June 2018. He went 12-1 at heavyweight.
Danilo Belluardo (12-3 MMA, 0-0 UFC), 24, is the youngest of the 26 fighters scheduled to compete at the event.
For more on UFC on ESPN+ 11, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.
UFC research analyst and live statistics producer Michael Carroll contributed to this story. Follow him on Twitter @MJCflipdascript.
News | MMA Junkie
MMA Life