New South Wales-based fighter Alex Volkanovski will meet undefeated Canadian featherweight Jeremy Kennedy at UFC Sydney on November 19.
The bout was confirmed by UFC officials after an initial report from the Daily Telegraph earlier today.
The Shellharbour native will look to build on his impressive record of 15-1, which includes an active unbeaten run of twelve and a unanimous decision victory over Japan’s Mizuto Hirota in June. ‘The Great’ has fallen victim to late cancellations during his time with the promotion – as part of the scrapped October 2016 card scheduled for the Philippines before injury to UFC Halifax opponent Michel Quinones in February.
Kennedy boasts a professional record reading 11-0, with his three UFC victories coming by way of unanimous decision. The 24-year-old yesterday took to ‘The Parting Shot Podcast’ to express his thoughts on the matchup.
“He’s a guy who’s always been on my radar, but I wasn’t thinking of him for my next fight… I wanted a [big] name opponent but this guy is just as good, he’s going to be my toughest test so far,” Kennedy said.
“He’s highly touted out there, 2-0 in the UFC, and his record alone is 15-1 so he’s a good, good guy… I’m well aware of this guy, it’s not like it’s a step down by any means.”
The bout the is the latest to be added to the UFC’s Australian return, with Bec Rawlings to meet Joanne Calderwood at 125lbs, ‘TUF Redemption’ winner Jesse Taylor taking on Belal Muhammad, and Mark Hunt booked to headline opposite ninth-ranked heavyweight Marcin Tybura. Sydney’s Ashkan Mokhtarian and Tai Tuivasa will also feature at flyweight and heavyweight respectively.
Fight Card (announced so far):
- Mark Hunt vs. Marcin Tybura
- Tai Tuivasa vs. Rashad Coulter
- Ashkan Mokhtarian vs. Ryan Benoit
- Bec Rawlings vs. Joanne Calderwood
- Belal Muhammed vs. Jesse Taylor
- Alex Volkanovski vs. Jeremy Kennedy