The UFC’s return to Kentucky after over a decade has its main event.
After the promotion announced the full card earlier, the headliner is now in place and it will feature middleweight contenders with [autotag]Jared Cannonier[/autotag] set to take on [autotag]Nassourdine Imavov[/autotag].
The five-round bout between Cannonier (17-6 MMA, 10-6 UFC) and Imavov (13-4 MMA, 5-2 UFC) will go down at UFC Fight Night on June 8 at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville with a main card that airs on ESPN following prelims streamed on ESPN+.
Two people with knowledge of the situation verified the booking with MMA Junkie following an initial report from MMA Mania’s Alex Behunin.
Cannonier, No. 5 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie middleweight rankings, will attempt to continue his run of success after winning four of his past five fights. The 40-year-old has beaten Marvin Vettori and Sean Strickland during that stretch, with his lone blemish coming in a title fight to then-champ Israel Adesanya at UFC 276 in July 2022.
He will have to defend his spot against No. 11-ranked Imavov, who has just one loss in his past six fights dating back to July 2021. The 29-year-old most recently competed in February, where he earned a main event win over Roman Dolidze at UFC Fight Night 235.
With the current June 8 fight card includes:
- Jared Cannonier vs. Nassourdine Imavov
- Roman Dolidze vs. Michel Pereira
- Dustin Jacoby vs. Dominick Reyes
- Raul Rosas Jr. vs. Ricky Turcios
- Miguel Baeza vs. Puna Soriano
- Ludovit Klein vs. Thiago Moises
- Carlos Prates vs. Charlie Radtke
- Brunno Ferreira vs. Dustin Stoltzfus
- John Castaneda vs. Daniel Marcos
- Jesse Butler vs. Brad Katona
- Denise Gomes vs. Eduarda Moura
- Taylor Lapilus vs. Cody Stamann
- Julian Marquez vs. Zach Reese
- Montana De La Rosa vs. Andrea Lee
- Rayanne Amanda vs. Puja Tomar