The UFC’s upcoming event in Los Angeles on August 4th gains a fight, and loses one.
A bout between Alexander Gustafsson (MMA Record: 18-4) and Volkan Oezdemir (MMA Record: 15-2) has been made official for UFC 227 in Los Angeles, CA.
Earlier this week, ESPN’s Brett Okamoto reported Gustafsson and Oezdemir had verbally agreed to a bout at UFC 227. This report was later confirmed by MMAJunkie.com after MMAJunkie contracted Gustafsson’s team after the news was first reported.
BREAKING: Alexander Gustafsson (@AlexTheMauler) and Volkan Oezdemir (@volkan_oezdemir) have verbally agreed to meet at UFC 227 on Aug. 4 in Los Angeles, multiple sources say. UFC has been working on a fight for Gustafsson on that card for awhile, finally got one done.
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) July 2, 2018
Today, the UFC made the official announcement that the bout will take place at UFC 227 in Los Angeles.
#??1?? ? #??2??
@AlexTheMauler meets @Volkan_Oezdemir in Los Angeles for #UFC227! pic.twitter.com/QmJ6keF0xr
— UFC (@ufc) July 5, 2018
Gustafsson will be going into this bout having last fought on May 28th, 2017, defeating Glover Teixeira by knockout. He was previously expected to face Luke Rockhold at UFC 227, but Rockhold is currently out of competition due to a leg injury.
His opponent, Volkan Oezdemir, will be stepping back into UFC competition after suffering a TKO loss to UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Daniel Cormier on January 20th. Prior to the loss, Oezdemir had been riding a five-fight win streak, including a first-round knockout victory over Jimi Manuwa at UFC 214 in Anaheim, CA on July 29th, 2017.
Oezdemir was originally scheduled to face Maurício “Shogun” Rua on July 22nd in Hamburg, Germany.
Oezdemir is currently facing a third-degree felony battery charge. He is currently scheduled for trial on July 9th. The charges stem from an August 12th, 2017 bar fight in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He was arrested November 19th, 2017 and later posted bond. He is currently unable to leave the country after surrendering his passport.
In other UFC 227 news, Derek Brunson vs. Antonio Carlos Junior has been canceled after Brunson was forced to pull out due to injury. ESPN’s Brett Okamoto reported yesterday that the plan is to rebook the fight for a later date.
UFC middleweight Derek Brunson is out of a scheduled bout against Antonio Carlos Jr. at UFC 227 on Aug. 4 due to injury, per sources. First reported by Combate. The plan right now is to re-book the matchup at a later date.
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) July 4, 2018
UFC 227 is currently scheduled to feature the following bouts:
UFC Bantamweight Championship Bout
T.J. Dillashaw (MMA Record: 15-3) (c) vs. Cody Garbrandt (MMA Record: 11-1)
UFC Flyweight Championship Bout
Demetrious Johnson (MMA Record: 27-2-1) (c) vs. Henry Cejudo (MMA Record: 12-2)
Alexander Gustafsson (MMA Record: 18-4) vs. Volkan Oezdemir (MMA Record: 15-2)
Cub Swanson (MMA Record: 25–9) vs. Renato Moicano (MMA Record: 12–1–1)
Bethe Correia (MMA Record: 10–3–1) vs. Irene Aldana (MMA Record: 8–4)
Ricardo Ramos (MMA Record: 11-1) vs. Kyung Ho Kang (MMA Record: 14–7 (1 NC))
Benito Lopez (MMA Record: 9-0) vs. Ricky Simon (MMA Record: 13-1)
Danielle Taylor (MMA Record: 9-3) vs. Weili Zhang (MMA Record: 16-1)
Wuliji Buren (MMA Record: 11-5) vs. Bharat Khandare (MMA Record: 5-3)
Polyana Viana (MMA Record: 10-1) vs. JJ Aldrich (MMA Record: 6–2)
UFC 227 is set to take place on August 4th, 2018 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA. UFC 227 airs live on Pay-Per-View. Prelims will air live on a Fox Sports network to be announced. Early prelims will be streaming on UFC Fight Pass. Ticekts are available now at AXS.com.
Stay tuned to SoCalUncensored.com for news and updates.
