Can the Noche UFC Card Live Up to the Sphere?

"A love letter to Mexico." This is what UFC President Dana White has affectionately referred Noche as. A card that showcases the promotion's best Mexican fighters on the biggest stage. This event was sparked by White's efforts to make martial arts not only affordable but also readily available to the youth across Mexico. With the inception of this card three years ago, the UFC broke ground on a branch of its Performance Institute in the heart of Mexico City, reestablishing its promise to make MMA available to anyone, anywhere. Now, three years later, UFC Noche 3 has arrived, but is it to the standard set by its predecessors?

Noche 1 & Noche 2 both featured title fights as their main event. The first was Alexa Grasso versus Valentina Shevchenko. A five-round war that ended in a draw that surprised many analysts around the world. It was Grasso's first defense as champion. The event was only made more critical as Grasso was the first Mexican-born women's champion in the UFC. Future Welterweight champion, Jack Della Maddalena, fought Kevin Holland in the co-main event. JDM's beautiful boxing and intelligent cage control forced the always eager Holland onto his back foot to add yet another victory to the younger man's growing win streak. A statement was made that evening. Noche had draw, promise, and a growing base of Mexican-born fighters. All that it needed was a bigger stage.

Then comes the Sphere—a titanic, glowing orb smack dab in the center of the fight capital of the world. Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, the Sphere burns with an LED radiance that can be seen from every street and gambling den for miles. This monolith to entertainment would house the second Noche card, an event that would prove to be one of the biggest in the company's history. Two titles changed hands that night. Grasso would relinquish her title to Shevchenko, while Merab Dvalishvili would rip the title away from the champion in a dominant victory over UFC superstar Sean O'Malley. Each section of the night was segmented with an ongoing film showcasing the storied journey of combat sports within Mexico. As the night went on, the audience was transported closer to the present as they learned the stories of how fighting was an art long before it was a sport.

This weekend, we find out the next stage of Noche UFC. A night capped with two of the most violent Featherweights ever to grace the octagon, Diego Lopes and Jean Silva. Given the shows both men have put on over the last few years, I believe it is safe to say the night should end in fireworks. As I touched on in my previous article, both fighters are extremely well-rounded. Either could put the other out with their striking, let alone with the strangling submissions they've wrapped their previous opponents within. While this year's card may not have a home as magnificent as the Sphere, a stacked event with some of the best Mexican fighters the promotion has to offer will undoubtedly still deliver another fantastic night from start to finish. I would not be surprised if we encounter a fight of the year on this card. Noche has never been a card to underdeliver.