A pair of new matchups have joined UFC’s September 3rd event from the Accor Arena in Paris, France.
Lapilus To Start Second UFC Run Against Taha
ARES FC standout Taylor Lapilus will return to the UFC roster in a couple of months, facing Khalid Taha in a bantamweight fight. News of the matchup was first confirmed by Culture MMA.
Lapilus previously appeared on the UFC roster for a four-fight run from 2015 to 2016, suddenly departing the roster after earning three wins and one loss.
Lapilus has made a name for himself in recent years through appearances in notable promotion Ares FC. He became their inaugural bantamweight champion in April, scoring an impressive first-round finish against then-undefeated talent Demarte Pena.
Lapilus is returning to the UFC on a four-fight winning streak.
Taha will be fighting to snap a skid. He has gone winless since 2019 with his past three fights resulting in two losses and one no contest.
Taha will be making his first appearance in over a year when he faces Lapilus.
Saint-Denis To Search For Second UFC Win
Coming off his first UFC victory, Benoit Saint-Denis will meet Christos Giagos in a lightweight fight. The pairing was confirmed recently by Farah Hannoun of MMA Junkie.
Saint-Denis picked up a win in June, scoring a second-round rear naked choke submission over Niklas Stolze. Eight months before then, he suffered a dominant one-sided loss to Elizeu Zaleski in his promotional debut.
Giagos has an important booking ahead of him, as he will attempt to avoid falling into a three-fight skid. He has suffered two quick wins recently, getting finished within a round by both Arman Tsarukyan and Thiago Moises.
Updated Card
UFC’s card in Paris, France is slowly coming together. The show is currently scheduled to have numerous French names on it.
French heavyweight Ciryl Gane will return in the main event spot, facing Tai Tuivasa in a five-round bout. Here is how the card looks right now:
Bout 6: Ciryl Gane (10-1) vs. Tai Tuivasa (15-3) (Heavyweight)
Bout 5: Makhmud Muradov (25-7) vs. Abusupiyan Magomedov (24-4-1) (Middleweight)
Bout 4: Robert Whittaker (23-6) vs. Marvin Vettori (18-4-1) (Middleweight)
Bout 3: Nassourdine Imavov (11-3) vs. Joaquin Buckley (15-4) (Middleweight)
Bout 2: Taylor Lapilus (18-3) vs. Khalid Taha (13-4) (Bantamweight)
Bout 1: Benoit Saint-Denis (9-1) vs. Christos Giagos (19-10) (Lightweight)
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