A fascinating welterweight matchup has been confirmed as the main event for UFC Kansas City later this month.
Following the news that former light heavyweight champion Jamahal Hill (12-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) is injured and out of the event's originally scheduled headline fight against Khalil Rountree Jr. (13-6 MMA, 9-6 UFC), the UFC quickly found a new main event for the April 26 showcase.
Ian Machado Garry (15-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC) will now face rising Brazilian star Carlos Prates (21-6 MMA, 4-0 UFC) in a five-round main event at T-Mobile Arena in Kansas City, the UFC confirmed on Tuesday.
Machado Garry returns to action for the first time since suffering the only loss of his career to date at the hands of Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 310 in September. The Irishman was outpointed over 25 minutes by Rakhmonov but came close to finishing the Kazakh star in the final round with a rear-naked choke. His stock certainly hasn’t fallen in the aftermath of that defeat.
In fact, coming so close to beating the division's so-called "boogeyman," the Dubliner solidified his status as one of the welterweight division’s top contenders and is surely within reach of a title shot at 170 pounds should he deliver another impressive performance against Prates.
Carlos Prates enters this event on the heels of an exceptional debut year in the UFC. After announcing his arrival with an eye-catching knockout win on Dana White's Contender Series, "The Nightmare" rattled off four consecutive KO finishes last year to catapult himself into the welterweight rankings.
Prates was originally set to face Geoff Neal at UFC 314 next week, only for Neal to withdraw due to injury. The fight against Machado Garry is undoubtedly a bigger one, and the thought of seeing two of the division's best strikers go head-to-head is sure to excite UFC fans.
