Alistair Overeem will welcome FNG heavyweight champion Sergey Pavlovich to the fold at UFC Beijing next month.
UFC Beijing is set to host of one of the more interesting heavyweight bouts in the final quarter of 2018. First reported by Farah Hannoun on Twitter, the pairing will see former UFC title challenger and Strikeforce champ Alistair Overeem take on FNG champ Sergey Pavlovich in the latter’s UFC debut. Pavlovich is one of a number of FNG talents who may be looking for a new home, as FNG owner and Eagles MMA founder Ziyavudin Magomedov is stuck facing millions of dollars of embezzlement charges in his native Russia.
Overeem (43-17) has seen the wheels come off over his past two fights, both of which saw him finished in brutal fashion. Francis Ngannou’s thunderous Knockout of the Year uppercut at UFC 218 late last year was followed up by a crushing elbow finish of Overeem by Curtis Blaydes at UFC 225. ‘The Reem’ will now look to get back on track against promotional newcomer Pavlovich. Overall, Overeem’s UFC record sits at 8-6. All six of those losses have been knockout finishes of the Pride veteran.
Pavlovich (12-0) meanwhile will drop the FNG heavyweight title upon joining the UFC. He last fought in November 2017, defending the belt against Kirill Sidelnikov. That fight ended in a first round TKO win for Pavlovich.
UFC Beijing (UFC Fight Night 141) takes place November 24 at the Cadillac Arena in Beijing, China.
