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UFC 300: Dana White Reveals Opening Fight for Landmark Event

A sensational matchup featuring two former champions will open UFC 300.

UFC CEO Dana White has revealed which fight will kick off the prelims for UFC 300 on April 13.

We’re now just over two months away from a milestone UFC event that is loaded with some of the promotion’s biggest names, and even though the card’s headlining bout is still a mystery, fan anticipation continues to grow with every passing day. 

White has been careful not to reveal the matchup that will close out the event, but during a recent interview with the Las Vegas Review-Journal the UFC CEO did announce that Cody Garbrandt and Deiveson Figueiredo will kick off the night’s action.

Cody Garbrandt UFC 300

Garbrandt (right) will open UFC 300 against Figueiredo.

“Obviously I wanna deliver the best card that’s ever been built," White said. “Every fight on the card right now could be a main event on either a Fight Night or a Pay-Per-View. We’re opening the card - the first prelim of the night is Garbrandt and Figueiredo. I mean, what does that tell you?”

The matchup between Garbrandt and Figueiredo features two of the promotion’s most devastating power punchers, and it’s also a fight that “No Love” requested after he brutally knocked out Brian Kelleher at UFC 296 last December. 

Figueiredo, a former flyweight champion, could edge closer to bantamweight title contention with a victory over Garbrandt. The "God of War" debuted in the weight class with a decision win over Rob Font.

A battle between two former champions is a fitting way to kick off UFC 300, and the already-stacked card still has room for at least one or two more fights before the event takes place on April 13 in Las Vegas.

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