After falling through earlier this year, the lightweight showdown between former champ Rafael dos Anjos and Rafael Fiziev is back on for July.
dos Anjos (31-13) is expected to face Fiziev (11-1) in the main event of the UFC’s July 9, 2022 Fight Night card. ESPN was first to report news of the booking, noting that it was close to being finalized. Fiziev subsequently confirmed the match-up on social media.
The pair were originally scheduled to face off in February, only to be pushed back to UFC 272 when Fiziev encountered issues obtaining a visa. After contracting COVID-19, Fiziev was then forced out of the bout entirely — with Rafael dos Anjos learning of the news while on-air with The MMA Hour.
Renato Moicano would eventually step up on short notice to face RDA at the March Pay-Per-View. dos Anjos wound up winning a one-sided unanimous decision, in what became a 160 pound catchweight affair.
The former lightweight champion has won both his fights since returning to the division last year.
Fiziev is the winner of five straight, and has not lost since dropping his UFC debut in 2019. The former Muay Thai fighter has won post-fight bonuses in his last four fights: two Performance of the Night awards, and two Fight of the Nights. In December, Fiziev finished Brad Riddell in the third round with a spinning wheel kick to close out his year in style.
The UFC’s July 9, 2022 event is yet to have a location, venue, or broadcast plan officially announced. The following match-ups have been reported for the card thus far:
- Rafael dos Anjos vs. Rafael Fiziev
- Ronnie Lawrence vs. Saidyokub Kakhramonov
- Nina Nunes vs. Cynthia Calvillo
- Antonina Shevchenko vs. Cortney Casey
- Josh Fremd vs. Tresean Gore
- Said Nurmagomedov vs. Douglas Silva de Andrade
- Jamie Pickett vs. Abdul Razak Alhassan
- Caio Borralho vs. Armen Petrosyan
- Cody Garbrandt vs. Rani Yahya
