Background
This event will mark the promotion's debut in Qatar, which will become the third country in the Middle East, after the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. [1] There were initially rumors that the first event in the country would take place on May 17 at UFC Fight Night: Burns vs. Morales, but that card was moved to the UFC Apex in Las Vegas for unknown reasons. [2]
The event headliner is expected to feature a lightweight bout between Arman Tsarukyan and Dan Hooker. [3]
A heavyweight bout between Serghei Spivac and Shamil Gaziev is scheduled for this event. [4] The pairing was originally scheduled for UFC Fight Night: Burns vs. Morales, [5] then shifted to UFC 316. However, Gaziev withdrew from that event due to a broken finger sustained during training. [6] [7]
A middleweight bout between former UFC Middleweight Championship challenger Paulo Costa and Sharabutdin Magomedov was expected to take place at this event. [8] However, Magomedov withdrew due to undergoing nose surgery, and it remains unclear whether a replacement opponent will be secured for Costa. [9]
A heavyweight bout between promotional newcomers Marek Bujło and José Luiz was initially scheduled for the event. [10] However, Luiz was later replaced for undisclosed reasons by current LFA Heavyweight Champion Denzel Freeman, who will also be making his promotional debut. [11]
A flyweight bout between former UFC Flyweight Championship challenger Kyoji Horiguchi (who is also a former one-time RIZIN Flyweight and two-time Bantamweight Champion, as well as a former Bellator Bantamweight World Champion) and Tagir Ulanbekov is scheduled for this event. [12] The pairing was initially expected to meet at UFC on ABC: Hill vs. Rountree Jr. in June, but Horiguchi withdrew for undisclosed reasons. [13] [14]
A light heavyweight bout between former KSW and UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jan Błachowicz and Bogdan Guskov was scheduled for this event. [15] However, the pairing was moved to UFC 323 for unknown reasons. [16]
A featherweight bout between Muhammad Naimov and The Ultimate Fighter: Team Grasso vs. Team Shevchenko featherweight winner Mairon Santos was originally scheduled for this event. [17] However, for undisclosed reasons, the matchup was rescheduled to take place two weeks later at UFC 323. [18]
A bantamweight bout between Felipe Lima and Daniel Marcos was scheduled for this event. [19] However, Lima withdrew for undisclosed reasons, and Marcos was instead rescheduled to face a new opponent two weeks earlier at UFC on ESPN: Bonfim vs. Brown. [20]
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