Promotion officials confirmed the pairing following an initial report from MMA Today. UFC Fight Night 122 takes place on Nov. 25 at Mercedes Benz Arena in Shanghai, China, and is headlined by a middleweight showdown between Anderson Silva and Kelvin Gastelum. The card will stream in its entirety on UFC Fight Pass.
After losing his first two Octagon appearances, Sherman enters the bout on the heels of back-to-back triumphs over Damian Grabowski and Rashad Coulter. “The Vanilla Gorilla” is 11-3 as a professional, including 10 victories by knockout or technical knockout.
Abdurakhimov had a two-fight winning streak snapped when he was stopped in the fourth round by Derrick Lewis in the UFC Fight Night 102 headliner this past December. The 36-year-old Dagestani is 17-4 over the course of his pro career, with UFC wins against Walt Harris and Anthony Hamilton.