LAS VEGAS -- It's a title fight and a grudge match. And now it's official.
Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington both successfully made weight Friday morning here at Red Rock Casino Resort & Spa for their UFC 245 headlining bout. Both fighters weighed in right on the mark at 170 pounds.
On Saturday at T-Mobile Arena, Usman will defend his UFC welterweight title against Covington in a bout long in the making. Not only are they the two best 170-pound fighters in the world, but there is bad blood that includes a physical altercation at the Palms Casino Resort buffet back in March.
Coming in, Usman is ESPN's No. 10-ranked pound-for-pound MMA fighter. Covington is right behind Usman in the welterweight division rankings at No. 2.
Usman (15-1) has won 14 straight fights and has not lost since 2013, his second pro fight. The Nigeria native has never lost in 10 UFC fights. Usman, 32, won the welterweight title by beating Tyron Woodley at UFC 235 on March 2.
Covington (15-1) has won seven straight and sports a 10-1 UFC record. The Fort Lauderdale resident won the UFC interim welterweight title by beating Rafael dos Anjos at UFC 225 in June 2018, but that belt was subsequently stripped. Covington, 31, is coming off a unanimous decision over former champion Robbie Lawler on Aug. 3.
For the co-main event, Max Holloway (145) and Alexander Volkanovski (144.5) both made weight. Holloway, ESPN's No. 9 pound-for-pound fighter, will defend his UFC featherweight title against Volkanovski.
Amanda Nunes also defends her UFC women's bantamweight title on the card against Germaine de Randamie. Both women weighed in successfully at 134.5 pounds Friday. Nunes is considered the best women's fighter ever and is also the UFC's women's featherweight champion. She is ESPN's top-ranked pound-for-pound female fighter. De Randamie is tied for eighth with Tatiana Suarez on ESPN's pound-for-pound women's MMA list.
One of the biggest question marks coming into Friday's weigh-ins was the status of Jose Aldo, the former longtime UFC featherweight champion. He was trying to make bantamweight for the first time -- and did at 136 pounds. He faces former World Series of Fighting featherweight champion Marlon Moraes (135.5) on the main card.
Jessica Eye was the lone fighter on the UFC 245 card to miss weight. The former flyweight title challenger weighed in at 131 pounds, five pounds over the 126-pound limit. She will be fined 30% of her purse. Eye is scheduled to fight Viviane Araujo on the prelims. Araujo weighed in at 126 pounds. The fight will remain on.