A new face is joining the broadcast team for UFC Vegas 31 on Saturday night.
Mike Bohn of MMA Junkie has reported that Michael Chandler — a former UFC lightweight title challenger — will be making his debut as a desk analyst for the event. Helping Chandler settle into his new role will be veteran UFC anchor Karyn Bryant and No. 5 ranked welterweight contender turned analyst Michael Chiesa.
Chandler has already handled some of the pre-fight programming, joining Bryant and Chiesa on the ESPN desk to film the latest editions of UFC Live as well as the Fight Night Pre-Show. These programs aired on Friday afternoon, but can still be seen on ESPN+ for those who missed them.
Had a blast with my peeps @karynbryant and @mikemav22 on espn2. Trying to learn from the pros. https://t.co/8cSrQ23p02
— Michael Chandler (@MikeChandlerMMA) July 16, 2021
The rest of the broadcast team has some established talent known to make appearances during these Fight Night events. Cageside commentary will be spearheaded by Jon Anik, who is accompanied by former UFC champion Michael Bisping and recently retired lightweight staple Paul Felder to provide play-by-play throughout the night. The Octagon announcer sees Bruce Buffer back inside the cage to deliver fighter introductions. And the roving reporter is Heidi Androl, the longtime correspondent who will provide extra coverage such as fighter interviews.
UFC Vegas 31 is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. ET with a six-fight preliminary card. A five-fight main card follows at 10 p.m. ET and is topped by an interesting lightweight matchup between Islam Makhachev and Thiago Moises. The entire card streams on ESPN+ and airs on ESPN live from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
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