After months of speculation, Alexander Volkanovski’s first title defence come against the fighter he took the title from, with a rematch against Max Holloway officially confirmed by the promotion.
The bout will be one of three title fights on UFC 251 ‘Fight Island’ which has been announced as taking place at Yas Island in Abu Dhabi on July 11. Further UFC on Yas Island will take place on July 15, July 18 and July 25. The promotion just last year signed a five-year deal to hold annual events in Abu Dhabi.
The other title fights on the card include welterweight champ Kamaru Usman facing challenger Gilbert Burns while Jose Aldo and Petr Yan meet for the vacant UFC bantamweight title.
Alexander “The Great” Volkanovski (21-1) claimed the title over Max Holloway (21-5) with a dominant five-round decision at UFC 245 last December with the win taking his winning streak to 18 while for Holloway it was his first loss since 2013 in the featherweight division, a run of 13 fights.
‘UFC Fight Island’ came to be as an international destination to hold UFC events to deal with travel restrictions caused by the Coronavirus pandemic.
“The infrastructure we are building will be such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the fighters that has never been done before – from the arena, the private training facility, and the Octagon on the island. It’s going to be an experience that none of us will ever forget,” UFC president Dana White has said.
Fights announced for the card:
- Kamaru Usman (c) vs. Gilbert Burns – UFC welterweight title
- Alexander Volkanovski (c) vs. Max Holloway – UFC featherweight title
- Petr Yan vs. Jose Aldo – Vacant UFC bantamweight title
- Shamil Abdurakhimov vs. Ciryl Gane
- Paige VanZant vs. Amanda Ribas
- Frankie Edgar vs. Pedro Munhoz
- Rose Namajunas vs. Jessica Andrade
- Volkan Oezdemir vs. Jiri Prochazka
