Kuumar Shyam (Abu Dhabi)
The complete card for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Fight Night in Abu Dhabi on August 3 has been announced.
Apart from the headline bout – Cory Sandhagen vs. Umar Nurmagomedov – revealed earlier, the card has more weight added with a former Strikeforce welterweight champion in Nick Diaz and a former interim UFC lightweight champion in Tony Ferguson up against strong opponents respectively at the Etihad Arena.
UFC President Dana White took to social media to announce the card.
Diaz will step back into the octagon and tests skills against the No.13-ranked welterweight Vicente Luque. The former UFC welterweight title contender will look to take out a ranked contender Luque in the 77-kilogramme category on his shock comeback in three years. At 40 years, the record for Diaz stands at 26-10 (two no-contests) while his opponent is on a seven-match losing streak.
The veteran fighter, who was the inaugural welterweight champion in 2010, has entered the Octagon just once since 2015. His last bout came in 2021, when he lost to Robbie Lawler at UFC 266.
The awe factor behind Diaz is also due to the fact that he has not tasted victory since 2011. Since 2021, he has also lost to Carlos Condit and George St-Pierre and his clash with Anderson Silva ended up being a no-contest.
"In the five-round co-main event, Nick Diaz is returning to the welterweight division to fight number 14 ranked Vicente Luque in what is certain to be an absolute war," he said.
There are also a number of other intriguing battles lined up. "You have the best prospect in the bantamweight division in No.10-ranked Umar Nurmagomedov taking on the second-ranked Cory Sandhagen in what is the number one contender fight at 135 pounds [61kg]," White revealed.
A native of Colarado, the American Sandhagen returns to the UAE capital to cement his status as top contender in the division. He boasts wins over Rob Font, Chito Vera, and soon-to-be UFC Hall of Famer Frankie Edgar.
Sandhagen (17-4 record) will make his case for a title shot with a convincing win over rising star Nurmagomedov, a sibling of Dubai golden visa-holder Khabib Nurmagomedov.
In turn, Umar (17-0) looks to put the division on notice by taking out a top-ranked opponent and making his first Octagon appearance in Abu Dhabi.
Umar made his mark in the division after delivering dominant performances over Raoni Barcelos, Brian Kelleher and Sergey Morozov and seeks his career's biggest win.
The No.4-ranked Chito Vera is returning after his title fight against Sean O'Malley in March to take on former world champion and the sixth-ranked Deiveson Figueiredo. The latter is undefeated since moving up to 61kg and is coming off a finish over Cody Garbrad at UFC300.
Organised by Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi), the Fight Night will mark the 18th UFC event to be held in the Emirate, gathering leading mixed martial artists from around the world, and supporting global sporting tournaments.
As well as Fight Night, Abu Dhabi will also host UFC 308 at Etihad Arena on October 26. The fight card has not yet been announced but there will be at least one title bout featured.
Meanwhile, Saturday will see Islam Makhachev, a close family friend of the Nurmagomedovs, take on Dustin Poirier in his lightweight title defence at the Prudential Centre in Newark, New Jersey, as the main event of UFC 302.