It was a weird moment leading up to the weekend for combat sports fan, watching Mike Tyson vs Jake Paul. The 58-year-old Tyson had a chance to go blow-for-blow, but fought gassed as any of his age would. Amid the uneasiness of the boxing icon fading out comes good tiding from close friend and UFC CEO Dana White. The UFC boss dropped some fight news on UFC 310 right after Paul vs. Tyson.
For one – undefeated welterweights will duke it out for top contender position at UFC 310. After champion Belal Muhammad pulled out due to his foot infection, the undefeated Shavkat Rakhmonov stayed on for the December 7th card. Now, he meets Ian Machado Garry in the co-main event to stack up the card. Dana White also informed that Alexandre Pantoja gets his wish to headline the card.
Pantoja shares the main event spot vs. newcomer and former RIZIN bantamweight champion Kai Asakura. Meanwhile, both Garry and Joaquin Buckley threw their name in the hat for Rakhmonov amid talks of facing each other in the UFC on ESPN 63 headliner in Tampa. But Dana White and Co. opted to go with Garry.
Pantoja vs Asakura is LIVE December 7th on @ESPNPlus PPV! #UFC310 pic.twitter.com/9iTc9pVG9t
— danawhite (@danawhite) November 16, 2024
He meets Rakhmonov in a five-round non-title co-main event bout at UFC 310 from T-Mobile Arena. Buckley slides forward a week to face Colby Covington at UFC Tampa. ‘Chaos’ is coming off a failed title bid against previous champ Leon Edwards last December. Now, an all-welterweight action will close out the December season.
Nick Diaz out of UFC 310 fight against Vicente Luque, Themba Gorimbo could step in
UFC 310 superseded the ache of watching Tyson fade or Paul not downing the opponent in a lopsided boxing stride. But the card itself wasn’t without its pitfalls. For one – Nick Diaz is out of UFC 310 in his second pullout of the year. Next month, Diaz was set to make his long-awaited return to the UFC in a welterweight bout against Vicente Luque once again.
UFC 310 PPV undergoes last-minute shuffle (Source: boxemag.com/agifght.com)However, MMAFighting on SBNation Network reported Saturday that Diaz withdrew from the upcoming event. Alex Behunin was first to report it; surging contender Themba Gorimbo will replace the 41-year-old on the card. Diaz has fought just twice in the last decade. Three years ago, Diaz lost by TKO to Robbie Lawler at UFC 266 after a six-year hiatus from the sport.
There were active reports about the Stockton brawler being involved in some ‘drug addiction’ and free-fight antic as usual. The 32-year-old Luque is currently experiencing a rough patch in his career. He is currently ranked 14th in the UFC welterweight rankings. Luque has lost three of his last four fights, most recently a knockout to Joaquin Buckley at UFC Atlantic City. A big-name like Diaz was to be the shine.
Gorimbo seemed to know this could happen again. He kept lobbying earlier this month for the opportunity to replace Diaz if need be. Now “The Rock’s favorite” takes on Luque. Now, Gorimbo has an excellent opportunity to enter the rankings if he can extend his four-fight winning streak.
