Middleweight finishers Ikram Aliskerov and Brunno Ferreira have agreed to meet inside the octagon at UFC 318, the upcoming pay-per-view show scheduled for July 19 in New Orleans.
Multiple people with knowledge of the booking confirmed the news to MMA Fighting following a report from Laerte Viana.
Aliskerov (16-2) made short work of Andre Muniz in his most recent octagon appearance in April, stopping the jiu-jitsu ace with a left hook with seconds left in the opening round.
The Russian talent was coming off the first setback of his UFC career at the hands of former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker, and now holds a UFC record of 3-1 with all wins coming by way of first-round knockout.
Ferreira (13-2) also has a 100 percent finishing rate in the sport, including his four UFC victories. “Hulk” made a name for himself by dismantling Gregory Rodrigues in one round back in 2023, and also stopped Phil Hawes and Dustin Stoltzfus in the final seconds of the opening round. The 32-year-old Brazilian recently rebounded from a 2024 submission loss to Abus Magomedov with a second-round armbar victory against Armen Petrosyan in March.
UFC 318 takes place at Smoothie King Center and features the retirement bout of Louisiana’s own Dustin Poirier in the main event, where he clahes with Max Holloway for the “BMF” title.
Damon Martin contributed to this report.
