The matchup between Magomed Ankalaev and Ion Cutelaba will be given yet another go on October 24th, as the fight has joined the UFC 254 card. News of the matchup broke on Wednesday after the bout was added to ESPN’s website.
The matchup between Cutelaba and Ankalaev is now one that has a long history through 2020.
The light heavyweights first met in February, where Ankalaev picked up a stoppage victory in under a minute. Controversy plagued the fight, as Cutelaba claimed the stoppage was not right and that he was still in the fight.
Because of this controversy, the match was rebooked for April. That matchup was eventually cancelled as part of the wave of shows that had to be thrown out due to COVID-19.
Re-booked for August 15th, the bout was removed again after Cutelaba tested positive for COVID-19. Moved to an August 29th card, the bout was halted for a third time due to another positive COVID-19 test.
The bout now joins a pay-per-view card which is expected to take place on “Fight Island” at Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Set to headline the show is a lightweight title unification bout between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Justin Gaethje. Here’s the full card.
Bout 9: Khabib Nurmagomedov (28-0) vs. Justin Gaethje (22-2) (UFC Lightweight Championship)
Bout 8: Robert Whittaker (21-5) vs. Jared Cannonier (13-4) (Middleweight)
Bout 7: Alexander Volkov (31-8) vs. Walt Harris (13-8) (Heavyweight)
Bout 6: Cynthia Calvillo (9-1-1) vs. Lauren Murphy (13-4) (Flyweight)
Bout 5: Rafael dos Anjos (29-13) vs. Islam Makhachev (18-1) (Lightweight)
Bout 4: Umar Nurmagomedov (12-0) vs. Sergey Morozov (16-3) (Bantamweight)
Bout 3: Da Un Jung (13-2) vs. Sam Alvey (33-14) (Light Heavyweight)
Bout 2: Liana Jojua (8-3) vs. Miranda Maverick (7-2) (Flyweight)
Bout 1: Magomed Ankalaev (13-1) vs. Ion Cutelaba (15-5) (Light Heavyweight)
