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Guide to UFC 221: Predictions, analysis and full coverage

Luke Rockhold will fight Yoel Romero at UFC 221 for the interim middleweight title. Rod Mar for ESPN

UFC 221, taking place on Saturday, Feb. 10, in Perth, Australia, features an intriguing headline fight between Yoel Romero and Luke Rockhold for the interim middleweight title. Rockhold was initially slated to compete against Robert Whittaker, but the Australian champion had to pull out due to injury. His new opponent will not be much easier, as Romero has won eight of his last nine matchups. Rockhold, meanwhile, is coming off a second-round TKO against David Branch in September.

Two top heavyweight contenders will go at it in the co-main event. New Zealand native Mark Hunt, who most recently knocked out Derrick Lewis in June, takes on the always-dangerous Curtis Blaydes. He has only one loss in 10 professional fights (Francis Ngannou in April 2016).

Other interesting fights include a lot of local talent: Cyril Asker vs. Tai Tuivasa, Jake Matthews vs. Li Jingliang, and Tyson Pedro vs. Saparbek Safarov.

Who will come out on top?

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