UFC 331 lands at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on September 19, and the card has genuine stakes at two different weight classes with a flyweight title rematch headlining and a lightweight bout that could determine the next contender for Justin Gaethje’s belt.
Alexandre Pantoja Finally Gets His Rematch at UFC 331
Alexandre Pantoja dislocated his arm in the opening moments of his fifth title defence against Joshua Van at UFC 322 at the end of last year and lost the flyweight title in the most heartbreaking of circumstances.
He has spent months recovering and is finally ready to reclaim what he believes was taken from him before the fight had a chance to develop properly. Van, meanwhile, has not been idle, successfully defending against Tatsuro Taira earlier this year with a fifth-round TKO.
Both men arrive at UFC 331 with something significant on the line.
Charles Oliveira Out, Mauricio Ruffy Steps In
The lightweight co-main event was originally heading toward a heavily rumoured rematch between Arman Tsarukyan and Charles Oliveira, the current BMF champion whom Tsarukyan has already beaten once.
Many suggest that the fight fell apart following the tragic passing of Oliveira’s close friend Allan Nascimento, and in his absence, fellow Brazilian Mauricio Ruffy has stepped in as a replacement.
The fight has been booked as a five-round contest, reflecting the title eliminator status it carries. The winner almost certainly fights Justin Gaethje next.
UFC 331 Full Fight Card
- Joshua Van vs Alexandre Pantoja 2 (flyweight title)
- Arman Tsarukyan vs Mauricio Ruffy (lightweight)
- Patricio Pitbull vs DooHo Choi (featherweight)
- Renato Moicano vs Brian Ortega (lightweight)
- Alonzo Menifield vs Iwo Baraniewski (light heavyweight)
- Gable Steveson vs Sean Sharaf (heavyweight)
- Marlon Vera vs Charles Jourdain (bantamweight)
- Tai Tuivasa vs Robelis Despaigne (heavyweight)
- Edmen Shahbazyan vs Brunno Ferreira (middleweight)
- Giga Chikadze vs Joanderson Brito (featherweight)
- Casey O’Neill vs Eduarda Moura (women’s flyweight)
- Ryan Gandra vs Ozzy Diaz (middleweight)
- Michael Aswell Jr. vs Joosang Yoo (featherweight)
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