Tag: UFC Fight Night 182

Brendan Allen gets quick rebooking vs. Sean Strickland at UFC Fight Night 182 on Saturday

The UFC wasted no time getting Brendan Allen a new fight after his bout with Ian Heinisch fell apart this past weekend.

The UFC wasted no time getting [autotag]Brendan Allen[/autotag] a new fight after his bout with Ian Heinisch fell apart this past weekend.

Allen (15-3 MMA, 3-0 UFC) has been booked against [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] at UFC Fight Night 182 on Saturday. The middleweight bout takes place at UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card airs on ESPN following prelims on ESPN+.

MMA Junkie verified the matchup with a person close to the situation after Allen announced the bout with Strickland (21-3 MMA, 8-3 UFC) on social media. The person requested anonymity because the UFC has yet to officially announce the contest.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CHYaJ8upPAo

“Lets try this again…..ITS FIGHT WEEK! Saturday night in Vegas i will fight Sean Strickland. It all happened super fast, but we got everything done and put together. Thank you SO much to the @ufc @danawhite and my guy @mickmaynard2 for working his tail off and taking super good care of me and getting me set up with a talented opponent🙏🏼 Back to #lasvegas tomorrow to handle business! Thank you as well to everyone for the kind words and messages about my last opponent and everything that happened, i really appreciate the support!”

Allen’s fight at UFC on ESPN+ 40 was scratched on fight day after Heinisch returned a positive COVID-19 test that caused the contest to be canceled.

He now takes on Strickland, who is coming off a dominant unanimous decision win over Jack Marshman at UFC on ESPN+ 39 on Oct. 31.

With the addition, the latest UFC Fight Night 182 lineup now includes:

  • Rafael dos Anjos vs. opponent TBA
  • Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Khaos Williams
  • Julian Marquez vs. Saparbek Safarov
  • Eryk Anders vs. Antonio Arroyo
  • Daniel Rodriguez vs. opponent TBA
  • Kay Hansen vs. Cory McKenna
  • Miranda Granger vs. Ashley Yoder
  • Alex Morono vs. Rhys McKee
  • Louis Smolka vs. Jose Quinonez
  • Randa Markos vs. Kanako Murata
  • Geraldo de Freitas vs. Tony Gravely
  • Don’Tale Mayes vs. Roque Martinez
  • Brendan Allen vs. Sean Strickland

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Michael Chandler rejects push to step into UFC Fight Night 182 main event: ‘We have other plans’

Michael Chandler won’t be making his octagon debut on Saturday at UFC Fight Night 182.

[autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] won’t be making his octagon debut on Saturday at UFC Fight Night 182.

After Islam Makhachev was forced out of this weekend’s lightweight headline due to staph infection, [autotag]Rafael dos Anjos[/autotag] called upon former Bellator champ Chandler to come in and save the day.

Chandler (21-5 MMA, 0-0 UFC) won’t be doing that, though. He answered fans pleading him to step in on Monday, and clarified there are “other plans” in the works for him that don’t involve fighting dos Anjos (30-13 MMA, 18-11 UFC) on short notice (via Instagram):

Chandler, who signed with the UFC earlier this year after roughly a decade with Bellator did not specify what could possibly be on the horizon for him if not for dos Anjos.

However, he’s been pushing for a top opponent in the 155-pound division, though, and has repeatedly labeled Tony Ferguson as the name of greatest interest for his debut.

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Islam Makhachev out of UFC Fight Night 182 main event vs. Rafael dos Anjos

The UFC needs a new opponent to fight Rafael dos Anjos in Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 182 headliner.

[autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag] has been forced out of the biggest fight of his career, and now the UFC needs a new main event on Saturday.

According to ESPN, Makhachev has been forced to withdraw from his lightweight headliner vs. [autotag]Rafael dos Anjos[/autotag] at UFC Fight Night 182, which takes place at UFC Apex in Las Vegas and streams on ESPN+.

The report cited an “undisclosed injury” as the reason behind Makhachev’s (18-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC) removal from the card. His team did not immediately respond to MMA Junkie’s request for confirmation.

The promotion is currently seeking a new opponent for dos Anjos (30-13 MMA, 18-11 UFC) on just six days’ notice.

Dos Anjos is meant to return to lightweight for the first time since a November 2016 loss to Tony Ferguson. The Brazilian started out his welterweight tenure at 3-0, but has since dropped four of his past five, with his lone win coming over Kevin Lee. If he can find a new opponent, the Brazilian will return to his original weight class, where he hasn’t won since December 2015.

The matchup between dos Anjos and Makhachev has now been called off twice. The pair were originally scheduled to meet at UFC 254 in October, but dos Anjos tested positive for COVID-19 and was unable to compete.

Shortly after the news broke, dos Anjos called on former Bellator champion Michael Chandler to step in as a replacement (via Twitter):

I wish @MAKHACHEVMMA a speed recovery. Looking for a new partner to dance. Looks like @MikeChandlerMMA is ready to go. Your move!

The latest UFC Fight Night 182 lineup now includes:

MAIN CARD (ESPN+, 7 p.m. ET)

  • Rafael dos Anjos vs. opponent TBA
  • Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Khaos Williams
  • Julian Marquez vs. Saparbek Safarov
  • Eryk Anders vs. Antonio Arroyo
  • Daniel Rodriguez vs. opponent TBA

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 4 p.m. ET)

  • Kay Hansen vs. Cory McKenna
  • Miranda Granger vs. Ashley Yoder
  • Alex Morono vs. Rhys McKee
  • Louis Smolka vs. Jose Quinonez
  • Randa Markos vs. Kanako Murata
  • Geraldo de Freitas vs. Tony Gravely
  • Don’Tale Mayes vs. Roque Martinez

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