43-fight veteran Eric Wisely returns to the UFC to face Gilbert Burns at UFC Fort Lauderdale.
MMA veteran Eric Wisely will return to the UFC for the first time in seven years, when he faces Brazilian powerhouse Gilbert Burns at UFC Fort Lauderdale on April 27, first reported by Combate.
Eric Wisely (33-9-1) returns to the UFC on an 11-fight win streak. Wisely fought last weekend at Cage Aggression 24, when he defeated short-notice replacement Will Shutt via second-round TKO. The 34-year-old fighting out of Clinton, Iowa, is not only the #1 ranked lightweight in Iowa, but he is also the #1 ranked lightweight in the United States (that was not signed to a major promotion) per Tapology. Wisely has not lost since Bellator 119 in 2014, and fought four times in 2018.
Gilbert Burns (14-3) is also in good form as of late. The Brazilian has won three of his last four bouts inside the Octagon. Most recently, Burns dominated Canadian Olivier Aubin-Mercier for three rounds to win a unanimous decision last December. Burns also holds wins over Alex “Cowboy” Oliveira, Dan Moret and Christos Giagos throughout his UFC career. Burns will be fighting at home as he fights out of Boca Raton, Florida, and trains out of Hard Knocks 365. The 32-year old is ranked 25th in the world at lightweight per Tapology.
The bout will be a lightweight contest.
UFC Fort Lauderdale takes place on April 27 and will be the promotion’s third event on ESPN. The event will be held in the BB&T Center in Sunrise, Florida. The full card is as follows:
- Main event – Yoel Romero vs. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza 2.
- Co-main event – Greg Hardy vs. Dmitry Smolyakov
- Glover Teixeira vs. Ion Cutelaba
- John Lineker vs. Cody Sandhagen
- Andrei Arlovski vs. Augusto Sakai
- Carla Esparza vs. Livia Renata Souza
- Court McGee vs. Dhiego Lima
- Jessica Penne vs. Jodie Esquibel
- Jim Miller vs. Jason Gonazlez
- Mike Perry vs. Alex Oliveira
- Ben Saunders vs. Takashi Sato
- Gilbert Burns vs. Eric Wisely
