With Aleksa Camur falling out of his fight with John Allan this Saturday at UFC 268, Dustin Jacoby has stepped up on short notice.
Jacoby will replace Camur with just days to spare, on what is arguably the biggest UFC card of the year — the promotion’s return to New York City, for the first time since 2019. The event takes place at Madison Square Garden on November 6.
Last year’s UFC 249 had originally been set for nearby Brooklyn, NY, but the coronavirus pandemic quashed that. The remainder of the year was split between Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi, but with the pandemic easing, the UFC has started to hit the road again.
MMA DNA was first to report Jacoby stepping up. His management team, Iridium Sports Agency, later confirmed the booking.
Jacoby (15-5-1) has found his stride since returning to the promotion last year by way of Dana White’s Contender Series. His original run in the company ended on a disappointing note in 2012, after Jacoby posted an 0-2 record. However since his return in 2020, he’s gone 3-0-1, and will enter UFC 268 off a TKO win against Darren Stewart back in August.
John Allan (13-6, 1NC) will be looking to bounce back from a loss to Roman Dolidze. Prior to that, he went the distance against Mike Rodriguez, but his original decision win was overturned when he tested positive for tamoxifen, and was subsequently suspended by USADA.
The UFC 268 card currently breaks down as follows:
Kamaru Usman (c) vs. Colby Covington – for the UFC welterweight championship
Rose Namajunas (c) vs. Zhang Weili – for the UFC strawweight championship
Justin Gaethje vs. Michael Chandler
Shane Burgos vs. Billy Quarantillo
Frankie Edgar vs. Marlon Vera
Alex Pereira vs. Andreas Michailidis
Al Iaquinta vs. Bobby Green
Phil Hawes vs. Chris Curtis
Edmen Shahbazyan vs. Nassourdine Imavov
Ian Garry vs. Jordan Williams
Gian Villante vs. Chris Barnett
Melsik Baghdasaryan vs. Bruno Silva
CJ Vergara vs. Ode’ Osbourne
John Allan vs. Dustin Jacoby
