The UFC’s March return to the United Kingdom has added a featherweight bout between a pair of fan favorites.
[autotag]Makwan Amirkhani[/autotag] (17-8 MMA, 7-6 UFC) is set to take on [autotag]Jack Shore[/autotag] (16-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) at UFC 286. The promotion made the previously reported fight official Tuesday. UFC 286 takes place March 18 at The O2 in London. The main card will air on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.
Amirkhani has struggled the past few years with four losses in his past five fights and five in his past seven. After a three-fight skid, he picked up a $50,000 bonus when the UFC returned to London in March 2022 when he submitted Mike Grundy. But in the London follow-up in July 2022, he was knocked out by Jonathan Pearce in the second round.
Shore will be looking to bounce back after the first loss of his pro career, which came this past July with a second-round submission setback to Ricky Simon. The Welsh fighter, who will turn 28 next month, was scheduled to return against Kyler Phillips this past November, but had to pull out with a knee injury. The former Cage Warriors bantamweight champion came to the UFC in 2019 and rattled off five straight wins before his loss to Simon.
With the official addition, the UFC 286 lineup now includes:
- Champ Leon Edwards vs. Kamaru Usman – for welterweight title
- Rafael Fiziev vs. Justin Gaethje
- Roman Dolidze vs. Marvin Vettori
- Gunnar Nelson vs. Daniel Rodriguez
- Luana Carolina vs. Joanne Wood
- Malcolm Gordon vs. Jake Hadley
- Jennifer Maia vs. Casey O’Neill
- Jai Herbert vs. Ludovit Klein
- Lerone Murphy vs. Nathaniel Wood
- Chris Duncan vs. Michal Figlak
- Veronica Macedo vs. Juliana Miller
- Jafel Filho vs. Muhammad Mokaev
- Makwan Amirkhani vs. Jack Shore
- Yanal Ashmoz vs. Sam Patterson
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 286.