The early (and official) UFC 290 weigh ins were not without its share of drama on Friday morning after No. 11-ranked lightweight contender Jalin Turner missed the official mark by two pounds (158), costing him 20 percent of his fight purse payable directly to opponent Dan Hooker. The good news for fans is that “The Tarantula” has been cleared to compete and will still face “The Hangman” this Sat. night (July 8, 2023) as part of the “Volkanovski vs. Rodriguez” pay-per-view (PPV) main card on ESPN+, going down live from inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
For complete UFC 290 weigh ins results and video click here.
“Dan’s a vet, I’ve watched him for a long time,” Turner told reporters at the UFC 290 media day (watch the video here). “It’s going to be an honor to fight him, and yeah the style it excites me. I expect him to stand up and bang, but you know, in case it does get to some grappling exchanges I’m going to be ready there. We’re going to put on some fireworks. It was fourth of July [on Tuesday] so now we’re going to put some fireworks on Saturday.”
Turner is an enormous lightweight, standing 6’3” with a 77” reach.
“I follow the City Kickboxing team for a while,” Turner said. “I watched Israel (Adesanya) before he even got into the UFC. It’s all love. I don’t have any animosity or hate towards them. It’s just how business is handled. I’m definitely looking towards the Top 5 after this one. I think they just put somebody else in number 10 so I’m like whatever he can have it. I win this fight I’m looking at Top 5. Whoever wants to let me in, let me in.”
That will require a victory over a super tough veteran this weekend in “Sin City.”
Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 290 fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard bouts on ABC/ESPN/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.
To check out the latest and greatest UFC 290: “Volkanovski vs. Rodriguez” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here. For the updated and finalized UFC 290 fight card and PPV lineup click here.
This story originally appeared on MMA Mania
