One of the UFC’s fastest-rising heavyweight contenders will have the chance to break straight into the division’s Top 5 when he competes at UFC 327.
Scheduled to take place at the Kaseya Center in Miami, FL on April 11, UFC 327 will be headlined by a flyweight title bout between reigning titleholder Joshua Van and Tatsuro Taira, which was announced during the broadcast for UFC Houston last Saturday.
In addition to confirming several other fights that were reported in recent weeks, today the UFC revealed that heavyweight contender Josh Hokit will get a massive step up in competition at UFC 327 when he takes on divisional stalwart Curtis Blaydes.
Josh Hokit Could Break Into Heavyweight Rankings At UFC 327
Still only eight fights into his professional MMA career, Hokit has quickly established himself as a heavyweight on the rise thanks to both his in-cage performances and his work on the microphone.
“The Incredible Hok” made his debut at Bellator 300 in 2023 and got his hand raised via third-round submission. He returned the following year and scored another submission-victory before moving on to the LFA, where he scored three first-round finishes during the first half of 2025 and went on to win a UFC contract when he also stopped Guilherme Uriel in the second round of their Dana White’s Contender Series fight in August.
Josh Hokit (red gloves) reacts after the fight against Denzel Freeman (blue gloves) during UFC 324 at T-Mobile Arena. | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
Hokit scored his fifth win of the year when he made his formal UFC debut in November and knocked out Max Gimenis in just 56 seconds, and the 28-year-old earned his second “Performance of the Night” bonus out of as many UFC fights when he stopped Denzel Freeman at UFC 324.
Curtis Blaydes Set For Risky Fight With “The Incredible Hok”
As impressive as he’s looked in the Octagon thus far, Hokit is getting a fairly dramatic step up in competition at UFC 327 with #4-ranked heavyweight contender Blaydes.
A member of the UFC roster since 2016, Blaydes holds wins over a number of the heavyweight division’s top names and fought Tom Aspinall for the interim heavyweight belt at UFC 304. After being knocked out just a minute into that fight, “Razor” returned last June and spoiled Rizan Kuniev’s promotional debut when he took a split decision over Kuniev at UFC Baku.
Curtis Blaydes reacts after defeating Jailton Almeida during UFC 299 at Kaseya Center. | Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports
A win over Blaydes would establish Hokit as a legitimate force in the UFC heavyweight division, and the fight is an intriguing addition to a UFC 327 card that is currently shaping up like this.
UFC 327 Fight Card
• Main Event: Joshua Van vs. Tatsuro Taira – For the UFC Flyweight Championship
• Dominick Reyes vs. Johnny Walker
• Tatiana Suarez vs. Lupita Godinez
• Azamat Murzakanov vs. Paulo Costa
• Curtis Blaydes vs. Josh Hokit
• Cub Swanson vs. Nate Landwehr
• Kyle Daukaus vs. Vicente Luque
• Kevin Holland vs. Randy Brown