Former UFC light heavyweight champion Magomed Ankalaev will make his first appearance since losing the belt in October, when he meets Khalil Rountree Jr. on July 25.
The 205-pound contest will headline UFC Fight Night at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, officials announced on Monday. Additionally, former bantamweight title challenger Umar Nurmagomedov will face David Martinez in a three-round co-main event.
Ankalaev (21-2-1) won the title at UFC 320 in March 2025 when he dethroned Alex Pereria by unanimous decision. After the fight, Pereira claimed he'd been dealing with multiple medical issues and demanded an immediate rematch. Pereira went on to reclaim his belt in a first-round knockout of Ankalaev in October. The Brazilian star has since vacated the belt and moved to heavyweight.
Rountree (14-7) is also coming off a knockout loss on the same UFC 320 card. Rountree was leading Prochazka on all three judges' scorecards going into the final round before suffering a knockout at the 3:04 mark.
Ankalaev is No. 1 and Rountree No 5 in UFC's light heavyweight rankings.
Nurmagomedov (20-1) is still looking to work his way back to title contention after he came up short in a title bid against Merab Dvalishvili in January 2025. He is back on a two-fight win streak, with wins over Mario Bautista and Deiveson Figueiredo. His opponent in the co-main event, the No.-9 ranked Martinez (14-1), a 27-year-old out of Mexico City, holds wins over Marlon Vera and Rob Font.
