What looks to be a likely title eliminator fight for the heavyweight division is reportedly in the works for UFC 321.
Scheduled to take place on October 25, UFC 321 will see the world’s leading MMA promotion return to the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi after UFC 320 in Las Vegas, UFC 319 in Chicago, and this weekend’s UFC 318 card in New Orleans, LA.
The UFC will be in Abu Dhabi later this month for a UFC Fight Night card headlined by Robert Whittaker and Reinier de Ridder, but it looks like the promotion is already working on booking the first fight for its return to the Etihad Arena in October.
Robert Whittaker fights against Paulo Costa during UFC 298 at Honda Center. / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
First reported by MMA Fighting, top-ranked heavyweight contenders Alexander Volkov and Jailton Almeida have verbally agreed to meet at UFC 321 on October 25.
Jailton Almeida (red gloves) celebrates after defeating Serghei Spivac (blue gloves) during UFC 311 at Intuit Dome. / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
The fight would be a huge one for the heavyweight division under any circumstances given that both men are ranked in the division’s Top 5, but the bout takes on extra significance given that Tom Aspinall was recently promoted to undisputed heavyweight champion following the retirement of former titleholder Jon Jones.
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A member of the UFC roster since 2016, Volkov was submitted by Aspinall in 2022 but rebounded with a four-fight win streak where he finished the first three opponents he faced during that run.
“Drago” had that momentum halted when he dropped a split decision to Ciryl Gane at UFC 310, but even after that loss the 36-year-old is still squarely in the heavyweight title mix as the division’s #2-ranked contender.
Alexander Volkov (red gloves) and Tom Aspinall (blue gloves) during UFC Fight Night at O2 Arena. / Per Haljestam-Imagn Images
Almeida actually joined the UFC has a light heavyweight off of Dana White’s Contender Series but has found considerable success competing in the heavyweight division, where he currently occupies the #5 spot in the rankings.
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An unbeaten start to Almeida’s UFC career came to a halt when he was stopped by perennial top heavyweight contender Curtis Blaydes at UFC 299. The Brazilian has stopped both Alexandr Romanov and Serghei Spivac in the first round since then, and he was mentioned by some fans as a potential first challenger for Aspinall following his promotion to undisputed UFC champion.
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