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The stage is set, and MMA fans are more than ready to take in one of the most anticipated title rematches in quite some time. UFC 260 will play host to heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic looking to turn away top contender and arguably the most feared striker in the sport Francis Ngannou for a second time. The champion, fighting out of Cleveland, Ohio, outclassed Ngannou badly in the first meeting in 2018, becoming the first to survive for more than two rounds against his feared power in a unanimous decision victory.

After that loss and a subsequent decision loss to Derrick Lewis, Ngannou has gotten back to his dominant ways with four straight fast knockouts. In fact, Ngannou has stopped his last four opponent in just 2:43 of ring time combined. Now, it's time to see if his game has evolved enough to get past the most accomplished champ in UFC history.

Plus, top prospect at bantamweight "Suga" Sean O'Malley is back when he takes on Thomas Almeida in a featured bout. O'Malley suffered his first pro defeat in a TKO loss to Marlon Vera in his last bout, but he blames a lot of that on a foot injury suffered earlier in the fight. This card will also see the return of women's flyweight Miranda Maverick when she takes on veteran Gillian Robertson.

Miocic looks to break a tie with Randy Couture for most victories in heavyweight title bouts among any major promotion when he attempts to defend his title for the second consecutive time and fifth occurrence overall. 

Let's take a closer look at the storylines throughout the entire card entering this weekend. 

1. Let's face it, we have no idea how good Ngannou is

The Cameroon-born slugger, nicknamed "The Predator," has held the distinction of being MMA's answer to Mike Tyson since making his UFC debut in 2015. Even though Ngannou's lack of a ground game was exposed in his title loss to Miocic three years ago, the jury is still out as to whether Ngannou has actually improved in that category and whether he deserves to be a slight betting favorite entering the rematch. The reason is because opponents haven't lasted long enough over the past few years for anyone to find out. Ngannou's current knockout streak of four fights have seen him log a combined two minutes and 42 seconds of Octagon time. Even more impressive, his stoppage wins came against some of the most dangerous and accomplished names in recent UFC heavyweight history from Curtis Blaydes and Jairzinho Rozenstruik to former champions Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos. Should Miocic be able to absorb and/or avoid Ngannou's early knockout threat, no one quite knows what the rest of the fight will look like. That, in itself, has produced an incredible amount of anticipation as Ngannou has quietly bided his time and worked on his game in secret waiting out a chance to redeem himself at the highest level. 

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2. How much longer can Miocic outlast the division?

Far from the UFC's most charismatic personality, the blue-collar Miocic has seen nearly every aspect of his well-rounded game get overlooked from time to time as critics and oddsmakers alike have been proven wrong. In fact, Miocic has closed as either the betting underdog or an even-money pick in five of his last six fights (including this weekend). Miocic's ability to weather the storm against elite strikers like Ngannou, Alistair Overeem and Daniel Cormier should be the stuff of legend. But regardless of whether the most successful heavyweight champion in UFC history goes on to eventually get his due, he is 38 years old and the mileage of having been through the wars should catch up to him eventually. At least in theory, largely because some of his greatest victories have come after absorbing heavy punishment. Yes, heavyweights tend to show signs of age later than other weight classes. And Miocic, for all of his success, hasn't necessarily been overactive in recent years, fighting just five times in the past four-plus years. Yet asking anyone to survive 25 minutes inside the cage with someone of Ngannou's danger a second time feels like a huge ask. 

3. This is a crucial time for the UFC's bold intentions 

If 2020 taught us anything, it's that UFC president Dana White is one determined individual. White's persistence helped UFC become the forerunners across professional and college sports in terms of returning to action amid the COVID-19 pandemic while maintaining a strict and responsible testing protocol. UFC is looking to take yet another bold step forward on April 24 when a stacked UFC 261 PPV card is scheduled to take place inside a full arena of 15,000 fans in Jacksonville, Florida. Here's to hoping UFC can actually get to that point without realizing it had made a mistake given how many fights continue to get postponed due to positive tests. UFC 260 took a pair of hits over the past week, including the scheduled co-main event of featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski's title defense against Brian Ortega for the same reason. Losing a small handful of fights hasn't been uncommon for the promotion ahead of each card given the reality that comes with fighters' training and travel schedules before entering the UFC quarantine bubble during the week of a fight. But this would be the wrong time for UFC 260 to continue have any further issues that might shake the confidence of anyone hoping to travel for the first UFC event next month that won't be socially distanced or in front of an empty arena.

4. Tyron Woodley has a lot of explaining to do inside the cage

As far as abrupt slides go, where a UFC champion has gone from elite to on the verge of losing his job in record time, the former welterweight king fits in somewhere between Renan Barao and Johny Hendricks in terms of recent memory. Woodley was still arguably ranked among the top three fighters, pound-for-pound, in the world when he submitted Darren Till in late 2018 to make the fourth defense of his 170-pound title. Since then, Woodley is 0-3 following 15 lifeless rounds in which the now 38-year-old appeared bizarrely unable to pull the trigger. Given his track record of being anything but a favorite of UFC brass, a loss this weekend to Vicente Luque would undoubtedly mark the end of Woodley's eight-year run inside the Octagon. Given Luque's current run, which includes victories in 12 of his previous 14 bouts, Woodley enters as a sizable underdog and will need to show the kind of offensive explosion to keep the aggressive Luque off of him that the former champion hasn't shown in years. 

5. It's get-well time for "Suga" Sean O'Malley

It was just nine months ago that O'Malley, then an unbeaten bantamweight prospect with a huge following and unique flare, was considered by some to be the next big thing in the sport. A first-round TKO loss to Marlon Vera followed as O'Malley, who suffered a foot injury, saw a huge amount of buzz and luster removed with the surprising defeat. Some have criticized the 26-year-old O'Malley for his comments regarding why and how he lost immediately after the fight. All of this leads to a decent amount of pressure upon the dynamic striker's shoulders in his return against hard-hitting Brazilian Thomas Almeida. Although the matchup has the potential for fireworks given their respective styles, Almeida enters on a decidedly cold streak having lost four of his previous five fights, including three straight. This gives "Sugar Sean" an opportunity to rehab his brand and get back in line in the larger bantamweight title picture. 

Who wins Miocic vs. Ngannou, and which picks do you need to parlay together for a mammoth payout of almost 20-1? Visit SportsLine now to get detailed picks on UFC 260, all from the ultimate insider who went an amazing 58-14 on picks last year.