After a couple of attempts to put the fight together, the third time might just be the charm for JP Buys and Nate Smith.
On Monday, Cageside Press confirmed an initial report by MMA Junkie that South Africa’s Buys and America’s Smith were once again booked for Dana White’s Contender Series. The fight is expected to take place on November 17 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Buys and Smith were booked twice (first in August, then again in September) only for visa issues to arise for the South African, resulting in Smith instead fighting Jimmy Flick. Smith (6-1) wound up losing that fight via a third-round arm bar. But he’s getting another shot on the show here, against the man he was originally expecting to face.
For Buys (8-2), he’ll be looking to become part of the next husband and wife duo in the UFC, after wife Cheyanne won her way into the promotion as part of the Contender Series back in August. JP Buys, for his part, has won his last four fights, and most recently competed under the LFA banner last November.
Buys appeared on Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series (as it was then called) back in 2017, coming up short against Joby Sanchez. Although Buys has fought at bantamweight, the fight with Smith will be 10lbs lighter at flyweight.
The current line-up for the November 17 edition of Dana White’s Contender Series is as follows:
Kenneth Bergh vs. Matheus Scheffel
Chelsea Hackett vs. Jamey-Lyn Horth Wessels
Sherrard Blackledge vs. Tucker Lutz
JP Buys vs. Nate Smith
