Las Vegas – UFC® delivers another action-packed night at UFC APEX in Las Vegas, set to be headlined by a clash of top 15 middleweight stand-up artists as No. 8 ranked Uriah Hall takes on No. 11 ranked Sean Strickland. In the co-main event, fan favorite Sam Alvey faces off with rising prospect Roman Kopylov.
UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: HALL vs STRICKLAND will take place Saturday, July 31 from UFC APEX in Las Vegas. All bouts will be available on ESPN, ESPN+ and ESPN Deportes beginning with the prelims at 6 p.m. ET/ 3 p.m. PT and followed by the main card at 9 p.m. ET/ 6 p.m. PT.
Elite striker Hall (17-9, fighting out of Queens, N.Y.) aims to deliver another spectacular knockout in his third UFC main event. Currently on the best win streak of his UFC career, Hall recently secured stoppage victories over former UFC middleweight champions Chris Weidman and Anderson Silva. He now looks to keep his momentum going against Strickland while making a case to break into the Top 5.
Strickland (15-4, fighting out of Corona, Calif.) intends to make a statement in his first UFC headlining effort. Known for his confident fighting style, Strickland is undefeated since returning to the Octagon after a two-year layoff, including victories over Jack Marshman, Brendan Allen and Krzysztof Jotko. He now has his sights set on snapping Hall’s win streak and cementing himself as a top contender in the division.
Alvey (33-15-1, 1 NC, fighting out of Temecula, Calif.) returns to action looking to secure another classic stoppage victory in a pivotal UFC bout for the popular knockout artist. A member of The Ultimate Fighter season 16, he has been a part of the UFC roster since 2014 and owns wins over Rashad Evans, Nate Marquardt and Eric Spicely. Alvey now seeks to keep Kopylov from earning his first UFC victory and show that he is still part of the elite.
Budding contender Kopylov (8-1, fighting out of Bachatsky, Kemerovo, Russia) enters his sophomore UFC bout aiming to show off the skills that garnered his status as one of the top Russian prospects. A multiple-time world champion in hand-to-hand combat, he joined the UFC with an undefeated record of 8-0 with all but one of those finishes coming by knockout. Kopylov is now gunning for the biggest win of his career and begin his journey towards the Top 15.
Additional bouts on the card include:
- Dana White’s Contender Series alums battle as strawweights Cheyanne Buys (5-2, fighting out of Irving, Texas) and Gloria de Paula (5-3, fighting out of Sao Paulo, Brazil) vie for their first UFC victories
- Kyung Ho Kang (17-8, 1 NC, fighting out of Busan, South Korea) seeks to extend his win streak when he faces off with grappling specialist Rani Yahya (27-10-1, 1 NC, fighting out of Brasilia, Brazil) at bantamweight
- Former women’s flyweight champion Nicco Montano (5-3, fighting out of Albuquerque, N.M.) ends a two-year layoff to clash with Wu Yanan (11-4, fighting out of Xi’an, China) at bantamweight
- Welterweights Bryan Barberena (15-7, fighting out of Gastonia, N.C.) and Jason Witt (18-7, fighting out of Overland Park, Kan.) clash
- Niklas Stolze (12-4, fighting out of Magdeburg, Germany) intends to secure his first UFC victory when he takes on highly-touted Mounir Lazzez (10-2, fighting out of Dubai, United Arab Emirates) at welterweight
- Strawweights Jinh Yu Frey (10-6, fighting out of Arlington, Texas) and Ashley Yoder (8-7, fighting out of Temecula, Calif.) lock horns in an entertaining matchup
- In a pivotal heavyweight contenders’ bout, No. 7 ranked Shamil Abdurakhimov (20-5, fighting out of Dagestan, Russia) faces No. 10 Chris Daukaus (11-3, fighting out of Philadelphia, Penn.)
- The Ultimate Fighter veteran Chris Gruetzemacher (14-4, fighting out of New Bern, N.C.) meets Rafa Garcia (12-1, fighting out of Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico) in a lightweight bout
- An exciting featherweight bout sees Danny Chavez (11-4, fighting out of Miami, Fla.) meet Kai Kamaka (8-4, fighting out of Kapolei, Hawaii) who replaces Dooho Choi on short notice due to injury
- Ronnie Lawrence (7-1, fighting out of Deerfield Beach, Fla.) looks to stay undefeated in the UFC when he takes on Trevin Jones (13-6, 1 NC, fighting out of Maite, Guam) at bantamweight
- Dana White’s Contender Series signees Collin Anglin (8-1, fighting out of South Lyon, Mich.) and Melsik Baghdasaryan (5-1, fighting out of Glendale, Calif., by way of Yerevan, Armenia) aim to impress in their UFC debuts at featherweight
- Dana White’s Contender Series veterans Philip Rowe (9-3, fighting out of Ocoee, Fla.) and undefeated Orion Cosce (7-0, fighting out of Orangevale, Calif.) meet at welterweight
- Veteran flyweight Ryan Benoit (10-7, fighting out of Dallas, Texas) competes in his ninth UFC contest against Zarrukh Adashev (3-3, fighting out of New York, N.Y. by way of Samarkand, Uzbekistan)
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