Report: Edson Barboza, Makwan Amirkhani Meet At October 10th. UFC Fight Island Event
Muay Thai ace, Edson Barboza seems to have finally nailed down an opponent for his second appearance at 145-pounds.
The Brazilian veteran was briefly linked to a featherweight showdown with fellow striking ace, Jeremy ‘Lil’ Heathen’ Stephens, with that pairing failing to come to fruition with the latter citing a lack of time to make the 145-pound limit safely.
Then paired with featherweight contender, ‘Super’ Sodiq Yusuff, the Nigeria native was forced to withdraw due to issues with his passport. Making the Octagon walk on October 10 – Barboza is slated to stand opposite grappling sensation, Makwan ‘Mr. Finland’ Amirkhani.
The ‘Fight Island’ date will mark Barboza’s second outing at featherweight, following a close, controversial split decision defeat to ‘Dynamite’ Dan Ige at UFC Fight Night Jacksonville in May. The defeat marked Barboza’s third straight, following another decision loss to Paul Felder, and a knockout blemish to interim lightweight best, Justin Gaethje at lightweight.
For proficient submission ace, Amirkhani the Iranian born grappler will make his second appearance on Yas Island – following a return to the win column at UFC 251 in July with an impressive first frame anaconda choke win over Danny Henry. News of Barboza’s opponent change was first penned by Combate reporter, Raphael Marinho.
Anderson Franca student, Barboza made the return to American Top Team in Florida recently, following an extended period with Mark Henry and Ricardo Almeida in New Jersey.
The Nova Friburgo native has scored notable Octagon wins over former world champions, Gilbert Melendez and Anthony Pettis, as well as Beneil Dariush, Dan Hooker, Evan Dunham, the above named, Felder, and a highlight-reel wheek-kick stoppage of Terry Etim since his UFC debut back in November 2010.
16-4 as a professional and 6-2 under the UFC’s banner, SBG Ireland and Turku Muay Thai staple, Amirkhani has lodged Octagon triumphs over the likes of the above mentioned, Henry, former Cage Warriors best, Chris Fishgold, as well as Jason Knight and Andy Ogle of note.
The UFC Fight Island event takes place from the Flash Forum on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, UAE – featuring a high-stakes bantamweight pairing between one-time title challenger, ‘Magic’ Marlon Moraes, and well-rounded contender, Cory Sandhagen.
