{"id":322947,"date":"2025-12-02T14:51:09","date_gmt":"2025-12-02T14:51:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/322947\/"},"modified":"2025-12-02T14:51:09","modified_gmt":"2025-12-02T14:51:09","slug":"2-banger-fights-reportedly-set-for-ufcs-return-to-mexico-in-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/322947\/","title":{"rendered":"2 banger fights reportedly set for UFC&#8217;s return to Mexico in 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p id=\"inline-text-0\" class=\"mt-[18px] md:mt-0 mb-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"59\">A pair of flyweight matchups featuring Mexican fighters have reportedly been set as the first two fights confirmed for next year\u2019s UFC Mexico card. <\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-1\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"5c\">While this month still features a stacked UFC 323 event as well as a year-ending UFC Fight Night card on December 13, many fans are already eagerly looking ahead to 2026 and the one-two punch of UFC 324 and UFC 325 that will <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/fannation\/mma\/news\/massive-fight-arnold-allen-jean-silva-ufc-324-paramount\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">kick off the promotion\u2019s new era with Paramount<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-2\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"5f\">The UFC\u2019s return to Mexico has also apparently been set for February 28. A city and venue haven\u2019t officially been confirmed yet, but the card will reportedly feature Imanol Rodriguez\u2019s debut against Kevin Borjas and the return of Edgar Ch\u00e1irez for a fight with Felipe Bunes. <\/p>\n<p>Imanol Rodriguez Set For UFC Debut After First-Round KO<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-4\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"5l\">A contestant on The Ultimate Fighter 33, Rodriguez made the most of his second crack at joining the UFC when he <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/fannation\/mma\/news\/dana-white-contender-series-2025-week-9-free-live-stream-results-highlights\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">knocked out Roque Concei\u00e7\u00e3o in October<\/a> on Dana White\u2019s Contender Series to secure a contract offer from the UFC CEO. <\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-5\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"5o\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/fannation\/mma\/news\/ufc-ronda-rousey-shocking-return-fight-katie-taylor-boxing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">UFC legend reportedly in talks for shocking return fight against boxing champion<\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-6\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"5r\">The 26-year-old was defeated by eventual flyweight winner Joseph Morales during the course of TUF 33, but he technically still has an undefeated professional record given that all TUF fights outside of the finals are considered exhibition bouts. Rodriguez boasts a 100% finishing rate in his six pro outings, and he hasn\u2019t gone past the opening round since his first two fights. <\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_0,h_0\/c_fill,w_16,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images\/voltaxMediaLibrary\/mmsport\/mma_knockout\/01kbfqb7yy0ac9cmhyh1.jpg\" alt=\"Imanol Rodriguez will make his promotional debut at UFC Mexico.\" title=\"Imanol Rodriguez will make his promotional debut at UFC Mexico.\" width=\"0\" class=\"undefined w-full w-full blur-[5px]\" q:id=\"60\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Imanol Rodriguez will make his promotional debut at UFC Mexico. | (Chris Unger\/Zuffa LLC)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-8\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"64\">First reported by <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/ClubDeLasMMA\/status\/1995673977797443780\" rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">MMA Latinoam\u00e9rica<\/a>, \u201cHiman\u201d will make his formal UFC debut against fellow DWCS contract winner Borjas at UFC Mexico. Peru\u2019s Borjas is 1-3 overall since joining the UFC, and the 27-year-old most recently dropped a decision to Sumudaerji in August after he scored his first UFC win against Ronaldo Rodriguez six months earlier. <\/p>\n<p>Edgar Ch\u00e1irez Gets Another UFC Fight In Mexico <\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-10\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6a\">UFC Mexico will also see Ch\u00e1irez return to fight Bunes in his home country nearly a year after defeating CJ Vergara in Mexico City last year (first reported by <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/AgFight\/status\/1995632894757470618\" rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Ag Fight<\/a>). <\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-11\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6d\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/fannation\/mma\/news\/merab-dvalishvili-weight-cutting-pizza-ufc-323\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Merab Dvalishvili shows off bizarre weight cutting hack before UFC 323 title fight<\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-12\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6g\">\u201cPuro Chicali\u201d was scheduled to meet Alessandro Costa at this year\u2019s edition of Noche UFC before withdrawing due to a leg injury. The 29-year-old is 2-2 with one No Contest since joining the UFC, and his most recent loss came against <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/fannation\/mma\/news\/merab-dvalishvili-historic-win-dana-white-title-fights-ufc-323\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">upcoming UFC flyweight title challenger Joshua Van<\/a> at UFC 306. <\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/01kbfqd3g16wz67q66dk.jpg\" alt=\"Edgar Chairez (red gloves) fights Joshua Van (blue gloves) during Riyadh Season Noche UFC 306 at Sphere.\" title=\"Edgar Chairez (red gloves) fights Joshua Van (blue gloves) during Riyadh Season Noche UFC 306 at Sphere.\" width=\"5610\" height=\"3740\" class=\"undefined w-full w-full blur-[5px]\" q:id=\"6p\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Edgar Chairez (red gloves) fights Joshua Van (blue gloves) during Riyadh Season Noche UFC 306 at Sphere. | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-14\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6t\">Bunes also suffered a loss to Van in his promotional debut before he rebounded with a first-round armbar against Jose Johnson last January. The Brazilian dropped a decision to Rafael Estevam in his most recent outing in August, and now he\u2019ll try to even out his UFC record when he and Ch\u00e1irez clash on February 28. <\/p>\n<p>More MMA Knockout News<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-16\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6z\">\u2022 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/fannation\/mma\/news\/mma-fighter-flatlines-opponent-brutal-12-second-knockout\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">MMA fighter flatlines opponent with knee for brutal 12-second knockout<\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-17\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"72\">\u2022 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/fannation\/mma\/news\/cristiano-ronaldo-invests-mma-promotion-ufc-ilia-topuria\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Cristiano Ronaldo invests in MMA promotion part-owned by UFC star Ilia Topuria<\/a> <\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-18\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"75\">\u2022 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/fannation\/mma\/news\/mma-fighter-walks-off-jaw-dropping-ko-of-the-year\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">MMA fighter walks off after absolutely jaw-dropping &#8220;KO of the Year&#8221; contender<\/a> <\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-19\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"78\">\u2022 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/fannation\/mma\/news\/islam-makhachev-next-title-fight-ian-machado-garry-ufc-rankings-update\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Islam Makhachev&#8217;s next title fight could be set after latest UFC rankings update<\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-20\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7b\">Stick with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/fannation\/mma\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">MMAKnockout<\/a> for more FREE coverage of the UFC and MMA.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-21\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-secondary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7e\">Follow MMAKnockout on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MMAKnockoutSI\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Facebook<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/UFCKnockout\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">Twitter<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/mmaknockoutsi\/?hl=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A pair of flyweight matchups featuring Mexican fighters have reportedly been set as the first two fights confirmed&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":322948,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[570],"tags":[64,63,786,785,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-322947","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mma","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-fighting","11":"tag-mma","12":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/322947","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=322947"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/322947\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/322948"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=322947"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=322947"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=322947"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}