UFC Vegas 76 is headlined by a middleweight fight between Sean Strickland and Abusupiyan Magomedov.
UFC President Dana White announced the five-round main event during a special announcement Thursday evening on the promotion’s YouTube channel. UFC Vegas 76 takes place July 1 at UFC APEX in Las Vegas.
According to White, the brash Strickland is taking on a challenge in Magomedov that “literally nobody wants to fight.” Magomedov made his octagon debut this past September after a rash of cancellations, taking on Dustin Stoltzfus and stopping him with a front kick and punches in the first round.
In Strickland, Magomedov faces an aggressive striker whose relentless pressure pays big dividends. Strickland most recently put down another contender, Nassourdine Imavov, to rebound from a decision loss to one-time title challenger Jared Cannonier.
The July 1 booking will mark Strickland’s fourth fight in 12 months. He is 1-2 after his loss to Cannonier and a knockout loss to now-former champ Alex Pereira.