UFC is back with its first major event of 2024. The PPV year kicks off north of the border when the promotion returns to Toronto for the city’s first PPV in five years when UFC 297 lands inside the Scotiabank Arena on Saturday night. There are two title fights atop the marquee, headlined by the bad blood between middleweight champion Sean Strickland and top contender Dricus Du Plessis.
Strickland vs. du Plessis seemed incident-free upon its announcement. That all changed at a press conference held during UFC 296 fight week. The headliners got into a tasteless back-and-forth evoking homophobic slurs and banter about child abuse. The bad blood boiled over at UFC 296 when Strickland and Du Plessis brawled in the crowd.
Overshadowed by the drama is UFC 297’s second title fight. Raquel Pennington and Mayra Bueno Silva compete for the vacant UFC women’s bantamweight championship. The title was vacated after former two-division champion Amanda Nunes retired following a successful title defense against Irene Aldana at UFC 289 in another major…
