Saturday brings a historic night for boxing and a major European showcase for MMA.
In Dublin, Katie Taylor closes her legendary career at Croke Park against undefeated Flora Pili, with the vacant WBC super lightweight title joining Taylor’s WBA, IBF and WBO belts to determine the undisputed champion. More than 80,000 fans are expected for Taylor’s long-awaited homecoming and farewell.
In Paris, Dan Hooker welcomes former KSW two-division champion Salahdine Parnasse to the UFC in a five-round lightweight main event at Accor Arena. Parnasse enters his UFC debut as a heavy favorite, but Hooker brings the experience of 24 UFC appearances and years of fighting elite competition.
Here is tonight’s Fight Week Fight Night Preview.
1. Final Odds and Late Updates
Katie Taylor vs. Flora Pili
The betting market expects Taylor to finish her career with another victory.
DAZN Bet lists Taylor at approximately 1/20, with Pili at 9/1 and the draw at 18/1. Those are enormous odds for a championship fight, largely reflecting the difference in world-level experience between Taylor and her unbeaten challenger.
Taylor enters at 25-1 with six knockouts, while Pili is 12-0 with two stoppages. Pili has never lost professionally, but she has never faced anyone approaching Taylor’s résumé or experience.
The main event ring walks are expected shortly after 5 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. PT, with the main card beginning at 2 p.m. ET on DAZN.
Dan Hooker vs. Salahdine Parnasse
The UFC betting line is almost as decisive.
Parnasse enters around -550, while Hooker is approximately +400.
That number tells the story surrounding the main event: Parnasse is not being treated like a normal UFC newcomer. The former KSW featherweight and lightweight champion arrives with significant expectations and gets an immediate ranked opponent in Hooker.
But a -550 line against someone with Hooker’s experience makes this one of the more intriguing favorites of the weekend.
2. Weigh-In Fallout
There were no problems for either major main event.
Taylor weighed 139.6 pounds, while Pili came in at 139.9, making their super lightweight championship fight official. Taylor told the Dublin crowd she wanted to produce a fight worthy of the support she has received throughout her career.
The moment also marked Taylor’s final professional weigh-in.
In Paris, Hooker and Parnasse both weighed exactly 155 pounds. Even better for the UFC, all 28 fighters successfully made weight, eliminating any fight-day drama involving the scale.
Michael “Venom” Page weighed 185 for his middleweight matchup against Nursulton Ruziboev, who came in at 186. Farès Ziam and Axel Sola also both hit 155 for the co-main event.
3. Last-Minute Fight Changes
The most significant change came earlier in UFC fight week.
Mairon Santos withdrew from his featherweight fight against Nathaniel Wood because of illness. Undefeated newcomer Pavel Andrusca stepped in on short notice to make his UFC debut. Andrusca enters having finished seven of his eight victories, including five in the opening round.
Otherwise, the major fights survived fight week intact.
Taylor-Pili is official.
Hooker-Parnasse is official.
And both cards head into Saturday with their primary attractions ready to go.
One important scheduling note for U.S. readers: UFC Paris is an afternoon event, not a traditional Saturday-night card. The prelims began at noon ET/9 a.m. PT, with the main card at 3 p.m. ET/noon PT on Paramount+.
4. Three Things to Watch
1. Can Katie Taylor Finish Her Career Undisputed?
This is about considerably more than another championship.
Taylor has spent her professional career helping redefine what was possible for women’s boxing. Now she gets the ending that seemed almost impossible when her career began: a stadium fight in Ireland in front of more than 80,000 people.
The danger is that farewell fights can become emotionally overwhelming.
Taylor cannot fight the occasion.
She has to fight Flora Pili.
At 40, Taylor remains the vastly more experienced boxer, but Pili is 28, unbeaten and has nothing to lose. Taylor’s best path should be to establish her speed, combinations and movement early rather than getting dragged into unnecessary exchanges.
If Taylor wins, she can walk away as a three-time undisputed champion.
There are few endings in boxing history that could be more fitting.
2. Is Salahdine Parnasse Already an Elite UFC Lightweight?
The UFC is not easing Parnasse into anything.
His first UFC fight is against Dan Hooker.
His first UFC fight is a main event.
And it happens in Paris.
Parnasse previously held championships at both featherweight and lightweight in KSW and successfully defended those titles multiple times.
But Hooker has spent years fighting some of the best lightweights in the world.
That creates the real question Saturday:
Is Parnasse simply a major signing—or is he already a UFC title-level fighter?
If he dominates Hooker, the lightweight division may have a new contender immediately.
3. Does Dan Hooker Have One More Upset in Him?
The odds suggest Hooker has almost no chance.
His résumé says otherwise.
Hooker has been through the kind of fights that Parnasse has never experienced inside the UFC. He is taller, battle-tested and unlikely to panic if the fight becomes ugly.
The biggest issue is recent form. Hooker enters trying to avoid a third consecutive defeat, while Parnasse has won five straight.
Hooker probably cannot afford to let Parnasse dictate the pace early.
If he can turn this into a long, uncomfortable five-round fight, however, the veteran may have a much better chance than the betting line suggests.
5. Quick Fight Week Picks
Friday remains our full prediction column. These are the final Fight Week calls heading into the action.
Katie Taylor vs. Flora Pili
Fight Week Pick: Katie Taylor
Method: Decision
Confidence: 9/10
Pili is unbeaten and young enough to make this interesting physically, but the gap in championship experience is enormous. Taylor should be able to control the pace with her movement and combination punching and close her career with another clear decision.
Dan Hooker vs. Salahdine Parnasse
Fight Week Pick: Salahdine Parnasse
Method: Decision
Confidence: 7/10
The -550 price feels wider than the matchup deserves because Hooker remains dangerous and experienced. Still, Parnasse’s speed, versatility and ability to mix striking with grappling should eventually separate him. Hooker can make him work for it, which is why Fight Week sees this going deeper than some expect.
Michael “Venom” Page vs. Nursulton Ruziboev
Fight Week Pick: Michael Page
Method: Decision
Confidence: 6/10
Page is a modest -160 favorite against Ruziboev at +130. His unusual movement and distance management remain difficult to prepare for, but Ruziboev brings legitimate size and danger at middleweight.
Expect a tactical fight with Page landing the cleaner shots from range.
One Last Walk for Katie Taylor
There are plenty of good fights Saturday, but everything revolves around one moment in Dublin.
Katie Taylor will make the walk to a boxing ring for the final time.
She will do it at Croke Park.
She will do it in front of her home country.
And she has the opportunity to leave boxing as undisputed champion.
Meanwhile, UFC Paris offers the beginning of another story. Salahdine Parnasse arrives with enormous expectations and immediately gets the chance to prove he belongs among the world’s best lightweights.
One superstar is saying goodbye. Another may be arriving.
That makes this a very good Fight Night.
