An instant “Fight of the Night” candidate has been placed on the
Ultimate Fighting Championship’s June
pay-per-view offering.
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A report from
MMA Fighting late Thursday broke the news on that Dan Ige (16-6)
would be taking on Nate
Landwehr (17-4) at UFC 289.
The featherweights do not currently have an official destination
for their melee, but a top destination considered is the Scotiabank
Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. According to MMA Fighting,
the two have agreed to the match but the contracts have not been
signed. The expected pairing has since been confirmed by
other outlets.
Ige ended his first career losing streak, where he had suffered
three consecutive defeats, by demolishing Damon
Jackson in January. Before then, a trio of decisions to
Chan
Sung Jung, Josh Emmett
and Movsar
Evloev sent the Hawaiian tumbling down the featherweight
rankings. At one time, “50K” had amassed a six-fight win streak,
notching wins over names including Edson
Barboza and Mirsad
Bektic as he moved up the ladder at 145 pounds.
“Nate the Train” finds himself with ample momentum behind him, as
he is coming off three straight wins ahead of this June showdown.
Just one week ago, Landwehr tapped out late replacement Austin
Lingo to add to his win streak, although that includes just one
victory in 2021, 2022 and 2023 thus far. Before this current run,
the former M-1 Challenge champ had suffered a pair of knee-related
knockouts to Herbert
Burns and Julian
Erosa, but a decision triumph against Darren
Elkins kept the Tennessee native’s head above water.
UFC 289 does not have an official location or venue on the books at
this time, but it is rumored that Calgary, Alberta, Canada, will
play host for the UFC’s first Canadian event since 2019. There is
no headliner or championship bout currently scheduled, but a few
key pairings have been confirmed thus far. Matt
Schnell was recently announced as facing David
Dvorak in the flyweight division, while Eryk Anders
and Marc-Andre
Barriault will battle it out at 185 pounds.