There aren’t many more UFC events before the end of the year. We have just four promotions left before the books are closed on 2021. This weekend’s event will be the last time in 2021 that two women headline a card as former bantamweight champion Miesha Tate will face Ketlen Vieira.
UFC Fight Night: Vieira vs. Tate will take place on Saturday, November 20, 2021, at UFC Apex in Enterprise, Nevada. The preliminary fights will start at 3 p.m. ET, and the main card will start at 6 p.m. ET on ESPN Plus.
Ketlen Vieira vs. Miesha Tate
Before joining the UFC, Ketlen Vieira was a bantamweight champion in the Mr. Cage and Big Way promotions. She won her first four bouts in the UFC to move to 10-0, but she wasn’t very dominant. Vieira won three of those four matches by decision, and two of those wins came by split decision. Since that point, Vieira has lost two of her last three fights, and she missed weight in her unanimous decision loss to Yana Kunitskaya.
Miesha Tate has been a champion in multiple promotions too. The veteran won the FCF Women’s Bantamweight Championship and the Strikeforce Women’s Bantamweight Championship prior to signing with the UFC. Tate won the UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship with a submission of Holly Holm at UFC 196, but she lost the title to Amanda Nunes four months later. Three of her losses have been to Ronda Rousey and Nunes, the two most famous female MMA fighters ever.
Michael Chiesa vs. Sean Brady
Since winning The Ultimate Fighter almost a decade ago, Michael Chiesa has been a mainstay in the UFC. Chiesa has never taken a part in a championship fight, but he has long been a highly ranked lightweight fighter. He moved up to welterweight three years ago, and Chiesa won his first four bouts before losing by submission to Vicente Luque at UFC 265. In his 13 years as a professional MMA fighter, Chiesa has yet to record a knockout since he is a submission specialist.
Sean Brady is currently unbeaten as a professional fighter. He became the welterweight champion in Cage Fury FC before joining the UFC a little more than two years ago. Brady won decisions in his first two fights, and he has submitted his last two opponents. A win here would make him 15-0 and could lead to a place in the top ten in the next welterweight rankings.
Joanne Calderwood vs. Taila Santos
Joanne Calderwood was a very successful kickboxer before joining the UFC. She has been a marginal fighter in the promotion though with a 7-6 record over the last seven years. Calderwood is something of a gatekeeper as she has lost to standouts like Jessica Andrade, Cynthia Calvillo, and Katlyn Chookagian, while her wins were over outmatched competitors.
A win for Taila Santos would be huge. Santos is 18-1 as a professional MMA fighter with 10 of her victories coming by knockout. Her only loss was a split decision defeat, but she doesn’t have the same knockout power she did in lower promotions.