An intriguing featherweight bout has been added to the UFC 227 lineup.
According to a report from the Los Angeles Times, Zabit Magomedsharipov and Yair Rodriguez will square off on Aug. 4 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The 145-pound bout has not been formally announced by the promotion.
UFC 227 is headlined by a bantamweight championship rematch between T.J. Dillashaw and Cody Garbrandt. The proposed pay-per-view card could also include a lightweight showdown between Georges St. Pierre and Nate Diaz as well as a light heavyweight duel pitting Alexander Gustafsson against Luke Rockhold, UFC President Dana White recently confirmed.
Magomed Sharipov has established himself as a rising star in the division after beginning his UFC tenure with victories over Mike Santiago, Sheymon Moraes and Kyle Bochniak. The Dagestani fighter is 15-1 as a professional, with 12 of those triumphs coming via knockout, technical knockout or submission.
Rodriguez, meanwhile, generated plenty of hype after beginning his Octagon career with six triumphs in a row, as he bested the likes of B.J. Penn, Alex Caceres, Andre Fili and Dan Hooker along the way. That momentum slowed in his most recent outing, however, as the Mexican star suffered a lopsided second-round TKO defeat to Frankie Edgar at UFC 211.