A middleweight bout that has been a favourite choice among fans in recent months has been rebooked for the UFC’s February 19 card.
On Tuesday, Joaquin Buckley (13-3) revealed on social media that he’d be facing Abdul Razak Alhassan (11-4) at the Fight Night event. The pair were originally expected to meet this weekend, only for Alhassan to withdraw.
It’s a fight we asked Buckley about last month, and one that just might break the “head kick curse.”
For those unaware, the “curse” is essentially a chain of coincidental head kick finishes. Buckley floored Impa Kasanganay with the 2020 Knockout of the Year, via two-touch spinning head kick. Buckley himself was then knocked out by Alessio Di Chirico, also via head kick. Italy’s Di Chirico was then knocked out by — you guessed it — a head kick via Alhassan.
Buckley last competed in September, knocking out Antonio Arroyo in the third round to earn his third Performance of the Night bonus in four fights. In that span, Buckley has claimed wins, and an extra $50,000, against Jordan Wright and the aforementioned Kasanganay.
Alhassan had lost three straight prior to his much needed win over Di Chirico. He returned to the middleweight division last year, after struggling with the cut to welterweight. Alhassan missed the mark at 170lbs twice in 2020.
The UFC’s February 19, 2022 Fight Night event is expected to take place at the Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. The following bouts have been reported for the card thus far:
Rafael dos Anjos vs. Rafael Fiziev
Jesse Strader vs. Chad Anheliger
Austin Lingo vs. Jonathan Pearce
Chas Skelly vs. Mark Striegl
Kyle Daukaus vs. Julian Marquez
Khalid Taha vs. Mario Bautista
Diana Belbiţă vs. Gloria de Paula
Jessica-Rose Clark vs. Stephanie Egger
Ilir Latifi vs. Alexander Romanov
Johnny Walker vs. Jamahal Hill
Cory McKenna vs. Elise Reed
Jim Miller vs. Nikolas Motta
Joaquin Buckley vs. Abdul Razak Alhassan
