With a new UFC contract in hand, French lightweight Fares Ziam will appear at home as part of September’s UFC Paris card.
Ziam (12-4) will welcome undefeated Cage Warriors prospect Michal Figlak (8-0) to the promotion at the event on September 3, 2022. The event marks the UFC’s first in Paris, and there’s no question that Ziam was eager to fight at home.
The fighter announced the news via MMA Junkie on Thursday. “Fighting at UFC Paris is wonderful for me, my family and the French fans,” he stated during a Twitter live space. “It will be a historic evening so I will give everything to put on a show.”
Ziam is 2-2 in the UFC to date, and fought out his contract back in February, in a submission loss to Terrance McKinney. Prior to that defeat, he had won two straight, notching wins against Luigi Vendramini and Jamie Mullarkey.
Earlier this year, Ziam appeared to be among a number of athletes exiting the UFC roster. However with the Paris card fast approaching, and the UFC looking for some local flavor, the opportunity to return emerged.
Figlak is undefeated through eight fights, with six of those coming under the U.K.’s Cage Warriors banner.
UFC Paris takes place September 3, 2022 at the Accor Arena in Paris, France, and is headlined by French heavyweight Ciryl Game taking on Tai Tuivasa. The following match-ups have been reported for the event:
- Ciryl Gane vs. Tai Tuivasa
- Robert Whittaker vs. Marvin Vettori
- Alessio Di Chirico vs. Roman Kopylov
- John Makdessi vs. Nasrat Haqparast
- Taylor Lapilus vs. Khalid Taha
- Charles Jourdain vs. Nathaniel Wood
- Zarah Fairn Dos Santos vs. Ailin Perez
- Nassourdine Imavov vs. Joaquin Buckley
- Ricardo Ramos vs. Danny Henry
- Dustin Stoltzfus vs. Abusupiyan Magomedov
- Benoît Saint-Denis vs. Gabriel Miranda
