A rumored lightweight matchup has now been made official by the UFC. Rising 155-pound prospect Maribek Taisumov will face Evan Dunham at UFC 223 on Apr. 7 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY. The news was first reported by Newsday.
Taisumov Pushing For His Sixth Straight Win
Taisumov (27-5) has knocked out his last five opponents, including Felipe Silva in his last fight at UFC Fight Night 115 back in September. The 29-year-old has also won three-straight fight-night bonus’ and hasn’t seen the third round in a fight since a Mar. 2014 loss to Michel Prazeres at UFC Fight Night 38. The biggest issue for Taisumov has been activity, having fought just twice since Apr. 2016. Taisumov has amassed an impressive 6-1 record in the octagon. This will be his first fight in the U.S. during his UFC tenure, having previously fought in the States back in 2011 for the M-1 promotion. If he’s able to take out a 31-fight veteran like Dunham in this fight, expect him to boost up the lightweight rankings.
Dunham Looks To Shine In Brooklyn
Dunham (18-6-1) is coming off a majority draw against Beneil Dariush at UFC 216 in October, however the 36-year-old has remained unbeaten in his last five fights. It’s been an impressive turnaround since he went 1-4 in the octagon between 2012 and 2014. Like his opponent, Dunham has been relatively inactive competing just twice since Sep. 2016. The Las Vegas has been a mainstay with the UFC since his debut in Feb. 2009 and holds wins over Ross Pearson, Joe Lauzon and Rick Glenn. With this added lightweight contest, here’s an updated look at UFC 223.
Tony Ferguson (*ic) vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov – for lightweight title
Rose Namajunas (*c) vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk – for women’s strawweight title
Calvin Kattar vs. Renato Moicano
Michael Chiesa vs. Anthony Pettis
Paul Felder vs. Al Iaquinta
Felice Herrig vs. Karolina Kowalkiewicz
Ray Borg vs. Brandon Moreno
Chris Gruetzemacher vs. Joe Lauzon
Ashlee Evans-Smith vs. Bec Rawlings
Alex Caceres vs. Artem Lobov
Kyle Bochniak vs. Zabit Magomedsharipov
Evan Dunham vs. Mairbek Taisumov
*- Interim Champion
*- Champion
Who do you think will win this lightweight matchup at UFC 223? Comment below and tell us what you think.
