Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on
your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the
ESPN app. The third time is the charm, they say. On Wednesday morning,
MMA Junkie reported that Merab
Dvalishvili and Cody
Stamann are set to clash in a bantamweight affair on the UFC
Fight Night card that will go down on May 1. The pair should have
already locked horns at UFC on ESPN 19, but Stamann pulled out due
to undisclosed reasons a few days after the matchup was announced.
The clash between “The Machine” and “The Spartan” was rescheduled
for UFC Fight Night 184, but Dvalishvili withdrew due to COVID-19
complications before they could meet in the cage.
Dvalishvili (12-4, 5-2 UFC) is riding a five-fight winning streak
into his upcoming assignment. In his latest Octagon appearance, he
upended “The Ultimate Fighter 14” winner John Dodson
in a three-round bantamweight feature at UFC 252. Prior, “The
Machine” recorded similar decision victories over Gustavo
Lopez and Casey
Kenney, among the others.
Stamann (19-3-1, 5-2-1 UFC) will look to bounce back on track after
being outpointed by former
Cage Fury Fighting Championships, King of
the Cage and Ring of
Combat titleholder Jimmie
Rivera at UFC on ESPN 13. Before that, he hadn’t lost in nearly
two years and scored victories over Brian
Kelleher and Alejandro
Perez, in addition to fighting Yadong Song
to a majority draw at UFC on ESPN 7.
The UFC Fight Night event on May 1 will be headlined by a light
heavyweight clash as former
Rizin Fighting Federation champion Jiri
Prochazka will take on Dominick
Reyes. The card will also feature Cub Swanson
vs. Giga
Chikadze in a 145-pound affair, and a heavyweight battle
between Augusto
Sakai and Shamil
Abdurakhimov.
