Joining the three-championship UFC 251 card, Zhalgas Zhumagulov will make his UFC debut, fighting Raulian Paiva in a flyweight bout. Per a report from Farah Hannoun of MMA Junkie, the fight becomes the eighth addition to the show which is set for Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.
Zhumagulov, a Khazakstany fighter, enters the promotion on a four-fight winning streak from Russian MMA promotion Fight Nights Global, with three of them being five-round decision wins.
Paiva got his first UFC win in February, stopping Mark De La Rosa with an overhand right. The fight made him come back from his two previous losses in the UFC, coming against Kai-Kara France and Rogerio Bontorin. The “Dana White’s Contender Series” alum will look for his second-straight win.
The card, which includes welterweight, featherweight and bantamweight belts on the line, is so far the largest of the series happening on “Fight Island.”
Here’s the full fight card for the show so far.
Bout 8: Kamaru Usman (16-1) vs. Gilbert Burns (19-3) (UFC Welterweight Championship)
Bout 7: Alexander Volkanovski (21-1) vs. Max Holloway (21-5) (UFC Featherweight Championship)
Bout 6: Petr Yan (14-1) vs. Jose Aldo (28-6) (Vacant UFC Bantamweight Championship)
Bout 5: Jessica Andrade (20-7) vs. Rose Namajunas (8-4) (Strawweight)
Bout 4: Pedro Munhoz (18-4) vs. Frankie Edgar (23-8-1) (Bantamweight)
Bout 3: Paige VanZant (8-4) vs. Amanda Ribas (9-1) (Flyweight)
Bout 2: Volkan Oezdemir (17-4) vs. Jiri Prochazka (26-3-1) (Light Heavyweight)
Bout 1: Zhalgas Zhumagulov (13-3) vs. Raulian Paiva (19-3) (Flyweight)
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