By Lisa Flueckiger, Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns to Rio de Janeiro’s HSBC Arena tonight, August 3rd, for its 163rd edition. The main spectacle will be the featherweight fight between Brazilian champion José Aldo and challenger Chang Sung Jung, also known as “The Korean Zombie.”
Current champion José Aldo has a record of 22 victories in 23 matches and will try to defend his seventh title at the event, which will start at 7:15 PM. The Manaus, Amazonas native is known for mostly employing Muay Thai – Thai boxing – techniques in his fights.
His opponent, Chang Sung Jung, replaced former champion Anthony Pettis, who had to cancel his participation due to a knee injury. The Korean athlete’s ability to recover from blows and continue fighting, with kickboxing and Jiu-Jitsu, has won him the “Zombie” moniker.
A further highlight of the event will be the light heavyweight bout between Brazilian Lyoto Machida and American Phil Davis. Machida, current number one in his category, will take on the number five in the world in a promising match.
The other fights of the main card include middleweight fights between Cezar Ferreira and Thiago Santos, as well as Thales Leites and Tom Watson. In the category of flyweight, John Lineker will take on newcomer José Tome. The fighting night will also feature the first ever female UFC match held in Brazil, pitting Amanda “The Lioness” Nunes against German Sheila “The German Tank” Gaff.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship, commonly referred to as UFC, is a mixed martial arts competition based in the United States. Each UFC event traditionally contains five main fights. The numbered events, such as the UFC 163, are aired on pay-per-view.
Since UFC fights started in 1993 in Denver, U.S., the competition has been billed as no-rules fighting, although unfair behavior such as eye-stabbing and biting were off-limits from the start. Mixed martial arts allows the employment of several techniques including striking with arms and legs and grappling.
Tickets for the event can be bought at Circo Voador‘s ticket office or purchased online here.
What: UFC 163 – main fight José Aldo vs. The Korean Zombie
Where: HSBC Arena, Avenida Embaixador Abelardo Bueno, 3401 – Barra da Tijuca
When: August 3, 2013, 7:15 PM
Contact: (21) 3035-5200
Entrance: Tickets range from R$290- R$800
Read more (in Portuguese).
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