Heavyweights Curtis Blaydes and Jailton Almeida have a new fight date announced for Saturday, March 9 at UFC 299. The pair was initially set to battle it out in November, but the bout fell off after Blaydes withdrew due to undisclosed reason.
The bout rebooking was reported by ESPN, citing sources. UFC 299 location is yet to be confirmed.
Curtis Blaydes (17-4, 1 NC) is looking to return to winning ways. The 32-year-old native of Naperville, Illinois last fought in April, when he was stopped by Sergei Pavlovich in the first round. Prior to that, No. 5-ranked heavyweight contender won three bouts in a row, which includes a couple of stoppages against Tom Aspinall and Chris Daukaus, and a unanimous decision against Jairzinho Rozenstruik.
No. 8 Jailton Almeida brings to the Octagon fifteen straight victories. The Salvador, Brazil native was in action in November, when he scored a unanimous decision against Derrick Lewis. Earlier this year, the 32-year-old submitted Rozenstruik in the first round and TKO’d Shamil Abdurakhimov in Round 2.
In the main event, reigning bantamweight champion , Sean O’Malley (17-1, 1 NC) defends his title against old rival Marlon Vera (21-8-1). The latter won their first non-title bout in August 2020 via first-round TKO.
In Australia, UFC 299: O’Malley vs Vera 2 airs on Sunday, March 10.
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