Announce a significant lightweight contest featuring Paddy Pimblett and Benoit Saint Denis, now confirmed for the UFC 329 spectacle scheduled for July in Las Vegas.
This match-up was initially disclosed by Alvaro Colmenero and subsequently verified by reporters at MMA Mania.
Paddy Pimblett (23-4 MMA) is set to step back into the octagon, making his comeback since his interim lightweight championship bout against Justin Gaethje at UFC 324 last January, which concluded in a decision defeat. This loss ended ‘The Baddy’s’ impressive nine-bout victory run, a sequence highlighted by knockout wins against Michael Chandler and King Green.
In contrast, Benoit Saint Denis (17-3 MMA) is on a four-match winning streak, having secured his latest triumph via TKO over Dan Hooker in February at UFC 325 (details available here). Before that success, ‘God of War’ dispatched Beneil Dariush with a knockout merely 16 seconds into their UFC 322 encounter.
Beyond the ‘Pimblett vs. Saint Denis’ contest, reports suggest UFC 329 will also mark the light heavyweight debut of Robert Whittaker, a former UFC middleweight titleholder.
(via Zuffa LLC)
Whittaker (26-9 MMA) is apparently slated to face Nikita Krylov during the upcoming International Fight Week. ‘The Reaper’ approaches this encounter following a two-bout losing streak, having recently experienced a split decision defeat to Reinier de Ridder and a submission loss to Khamzat Chimaev.
Concurrently, Nikita Krylov (31-11 MMA) last fought inside the Octagon in January at UFC 324, securing a third-round knockout win against Modestas Bukauskas. This victory concluded a two-match losing streak for ‘The Miner’, who had previously endured consecutive knockout defeats at the hands of Dominick Reyes and Bogdan Guskov.
Should these announcements not sufficiently pique your interest, UFC 329 is also slated to present the subsequent matchups:
170 lbs.: Leon Edwards versus Daniel Rodriguez
135 lbs.: Cory Sandhagen versus Mario Bautista
125 lbs.: Cody Durden versus Ode Osbourne
Furthermore, the fight card is also rumored to include the inaugural appearance of highly regarded heavyweight prospect Gable Steveson.
Continue to monitor this platform for subsequent disclosures.
