With the recent announcement that Conor McGregor will not be able to compete in UFC 303 main event, a new headline match was needed. UFC president Dana White revealed that the new main event will showcase a rematch between light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira and his predecessor, Jiri Prochazka.
The initial showdown between them took place at UFC 295, where Pereira secured a victory over Prochazka in the second round. Pereira made history by becoming the first UFC fighter to hold titles in both the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions. He achieved this milestone in just his 11th professional fight.
Prochazka claimed the title with a memorable win at UFC 275 against Glover Teixeira, which was considered one of the standout fights in UFC’s recent history. Despite losing the title to Pereira, Prochazka showcased his talent by staging a remarkable comeback victory over Aleksandar Rakic.
White also announced the cancellation of the co-main event due to Jamahal Hill’s withdrawal from his fight against Carlos Ulberg because of a knee injury.
In place of that fight, former featherweight title contender Brian Ortega will now face Diego Lopes.
Lopes has been making waves in the UFC with three consecutive stoppage wins. The majority of Lopes’ 24 career victories have come by way of stoppage. Ortega rose through the ranks to challenge Max Holloway for the featherweight title in December 2018, but suffered a TKO defeat due to a doctor’s stoppage. Following a victory, Ortega then faced Alexander Volkanovski for the title and suffered another loss.
Ulberg remains on the card and will square off against former light heavyweight world title contender Anthony Smith in a 205-pound battle.
UFC 303 is scheduled for June 29 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
