UFC Fight Night: Cannonier vs. Strickland fight week schedule, full card, predictions, and betting odds

After a successful pay-per-view event at the T-Mobile Arena, the UFC will be heading back to the Apex facility in Las Vegas, Nevada for its next fight card, UFC Fight Night: Cannonier vs. Strickland (also known as UFC Fight Night 216, UFC on ESPN+ 74 and UFC Vegas 66).

The event is set to go down on December 17, with a series of intriguing matchups to look forward to. The UFC Fight Night card will be headlined by a middleweight clash between No.3-ranked Jared Cannonier and the 7-seeded Sean Strickland.

The co-main of the upcoming UFC Fight Night event will see the No.9-ranked lightweight Arman Tsarukyan square off against Damir Ismagulov, who is positioned three spots below at No.12.

Check out the Media Day and weigh-ins schedule for the UFC Fight Night event below:

UFC Fight Night Media Day

Media Day interactions with fighters are likely to take place on Wednesday, December 14, and can be watched live on the promotion's official website, YouTube, Facebook, and Twitch accounts.

UFC Fight Night official and ceremonial weigh-ins

Official weigh-ins for the UFC Fight Night event will take place on Friday, December 16, and can be followed live on the aforementioned platforms.

NOTE: The dates are estimated based on the usual schedule for UFC events and are subject to change as they are yet to be officially confirmed.

Check out the full card and betting odds for UFC Fight Night: Cannonier vs. Strickland below.

UFC Fight Night: Cannonier vs. Strickland main card

Check out the full card and betting odds for UFC Fight Night: Cannonier vs. Strickland below:

UFC Fight Night main card

Jared Cannonier +105 vs. Sean Strickland -125 [favorite] (middleweight)

Arman Tsarukyan -170 [favorite] vs. Damir Ismagulov +145 (lightweight)

Amir Albazi -400 [favorite] vs. Alessandro Costa +325 (flyweight)

Alex Caceres +160 vs. Julian Erosa -190 [favorite] (featherweight)

Drew Dober -155 [favorite] vs. Bobby Green +135 (lightweight)

Michał Oleksiejczuk -265 [favorite] vs. Cody Brundage +225 (middleweight)

UFC Fight Night preliminary card

Cheyanne Vlismas-190 [favorite] vs. Cory McKenna +160 (women's strawweight)

Jake Matthews -240 [favorite] vs. Matthew Semelsberger +200 (welterweight)

Julian Marquez -165 [favorite] vs. Deron Winn +140 (middleweight)

Said Nurmagomedov -120 [favorite] vs. Saidyokub Kakhramonov +100 (bantamweight)

Rafa García -120 [favorite] vs. Hayisaer +100 (lightweight)

Rinat Fakhretdinov vs. Bryan Battle Maheshate (welterweight)

Manel Kape -240 [favorite] vs. David Dvořák +200 (flyweight)

Sergey Morozov -225 [favorite] vs. Journey Newson +190 (bantamweight)

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Main card predictions for UFC Fight Night: Cannonier vs. Strickland

Michał Oleksiejczuk vs. Cody Brundage

Michał Oleksiejczuk has had a roller-coaster of a ride recently, going 3-3 in his last six bouts. The Polish fighter is coming off a first-round TKO win over Sam Alvey in August, rebounding from his decision loss to Dustin Jacoby in March.

Cody Brundage, on the other hand, is coming off back-to-back first-round stoppage wins in his last two octagon appearances. The 28-year-old knocked out Tresean Gore last time out in July before dispatching Dalcha Lungiambula with a guillotine choke submission in March.

Both fighters are coming off spectacular wins in their latest outings, but Brundage has certainly looked more impressive of late and is expected to continue his strong run of form at the upcoming UFC Fight Night event on Saturday.

Verdict: Cody Brundage

Drew Dober vs. Bobby Green

Drew Dober suffered two straight losses in 2021, but bounced back in spectacular fashion, picking up back-to-back finishes this year, with his most recent win coming over Rafael Alves via knockout in July. Prior to that victory, Dober scored a first-round TKO win over the talented Terrance McKinney in March.

Meanwhile, Bobby Green is fresh off a first-round TKO loss against current lightweight champion Islam Makhachev in February. Before that loss, 'King' picked up a unanimous decision win over Nasrat Haqparast the same month.

This lightweight bout is expected to be an exhilarating affair with both men aiming for a finish. However, Dober is expected to find a path to victory.

Verdict: Drew Dober

Alex Caceres vs. Julian Erosa

Alex Caceres had his five-fight win streak snapped when he faced Sodiq Yusuff last time out in March. The Miami native is now looking to get back to winning ways as he takes on a streaking opponent.

Julian Erosa is riding a three-fight win streak with his most recent victory coming over a game Hakeem Dawodu in September. 'Juicy J' is 5-1 inside the promotional banner and is expected to improve his UFC record to 6-1 in his next outing.

Verdict: Julian Erosa

Amir Albazi vs. Alessandro Costa

Amir Albazi will be looking to make his fourth successful UFC appearance on Saturday, hoping to pick up his fifth consecutive win. The 29-year-old Swede has finished three of his last four wins via first-round submission with his latest triumph coming over Francisco Figueiredo via rear-naked choke.

His opponent, Alessandro Costa, is set to make his promotional debut on Saturday on the back of a seven-fight win streak.

Albazi is a significant favorite in this matchup and it's not hard to see why the odds are heavily stacked in his favor. 'The Prince' certainly has an edge in experience over his opponent and has looked nearly unstoppable in the majority of his recent performances. That said, we're going with the betting favorite in this one.

Verdict: Amir Albazi

Arman Tsarukyan vs. Damir Ismagulov

Arman Tsarukyan came up short in his first UFC headliner against Mateusz Gamrot in June, dropping a unanimous decision after a closely contested five-round battle. Outside of that defeat, Tsarukyan's only loss came against the reigning 155-pound king Islam Makhachev.

Damir Ismagulov, meanwhile, is riding an impressive 19-fight win streak into this bout, with his latest win coming over Guram Kutateladze via split decision.

This fight is tough to call, but we expect Tsarukyan to find his way back into the win column and hand Ismagulov his first loss inside the UFC octagon.

Verdict: Arman Tsarukyan

Jared Cannonier vs. Sean Strickland

Both Jared Cannonier and Sean Strickland will head into the upcoming UFC Fight Night event hoping to rebound following their setbacks at UFC 276 in July.

'The Killa Gorilla' dropped a one-sided unanimous decision to then-champion Israel Adesanya while Strickland suffered a vicious first-round knockout at the hands of newly crowned middleweight champion Alex Pereira.

Both men had quality runs prior to their latest defeats, with 'Tarzan' riding a six-fight win streak and Cannonier winning five of his earlier six UFC fights. This fight is hard to pick, but we expect Strickland to get his hand raised.

Verdict: Sean Strickland