Two changes have been made to UFC’s July 2nd pay-per-view event, per recent reports. The new matchups are scheduled to join a card that is set to take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA as part of “International Fight Week.”
Veteran Lawler To Face Barberena
Robbie Lawler is expected to return to action in July when he faces Bryan Barberena. News of this matchup was confirmed by Mike Heck of MMA Fighting after Barberena previously announced the matchup on social media.
Lawler, an MMA vet of more than a decade, is coming off a recent win. He snapped a lengthy four-fight skid in September 2021, scoring a finish victory against name Nick Diaz.
Barberena beat one of the most experienced UFC fighters ever in his last outing, fighting to a split decision win against Matt Brown in March. That victory was his second consecutive time coming up with a win in the UFC cage.
Strickland vs. Pereira Moved Ahead To July 2nd
A previously booked fight between ranked middleweight Sean Strickland and former GLORY Kickboxing Champion Alex Pereira is scheduled to happen earlier than expected.
The matchup, which was previously targeted for July 30th, is now scheduled to happen on July 2nd. News of the date change was confirmed Tuesday by Nolan King of MMA Junkie.
Strickland will be fighting to keep his current run alive. He is currently on a six-fight winning streak, with two of those wins coming in the main event of a UFC card.
Strickland’s last appearance was a split decision over Jack Hermansson in February.
The fight is a big step-up for Pereira, who has scored two wins since joining the UFC roster in November 2021. A win would make him one of the top names in the division, throwing him into the conversation of contenders less than a year after he entered the promotion.
Updated Lineup
UFC 276 doesn’t have a main event set for it at the moment. Here are the fights that have been reported thus far:
Bout 5: Miesha Tate (19-8) vs. Lauren Murphy (15-5) (Flyweight)
Bout 4: Brad Tavares (19-6) vs. Dricus Du Plessis (16-2) (Middleweight)
Bout 3: Jessica Eye (15-10) vs. Maycee Barber (10-2) (Flyweight)
Bout 2: Robbie Lawler (29-15) vs. Bryan Barberena (17-8) (Welterweight)
Bout 1: Sean Strickland (25-3) Vs. Alex Pereira (5-1) (Middleweight)
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