Jan Blachowicz, Magomed Ankalaev Slated to Meet at UFC 282 on Dec. 10

A potential light heavyweight title eliminator between Jan Blachowicz and Magomed Ankalaev will go down at UFC 282.

Promotion broadcast partner ESPN reported that the contest is set for the UFC’s final pay-per-view event of 2022. UFC 282 takes place on Dec. 10 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and is expected to include a 205-pound championship tilt pitting Jiri Prochazka against Glover Teixeira, though that bout has not been made official.

A former light heavyweight champion, Blachowicz returned to the win column in his last outing at UFC on ESPN 36, when he defeated Aleksandar Rakic via third-round TKO when his opponent suffered a leg injury. The WCA Fight Team product won nine of 10 promotional appearances from October 2017 to March 2021, a stretch that saw the Pole claim 205-pound gold with a second-round TKO of Dominick Reyes and defend the crown with a five-round verdict against reigning middleweight king Israel Adesanya. He relinquished the belt to Glover Teixeira in a second-round submission loss at UFC 267.

Ankalaev, meanwhile, has authored a nine-bout UFC winning streak to establish himself as one of the top contenders in the division. The 30-year-old Dagestani is 2-0 in 2022, with a decision win over Thiago Santos at UFC Fight Night 203 and a second-round stoppage of Anthony Smith at UFC 277 to his credit. Ankalaev has lost just once in 18 professional outings overall, falling to Paul Craig via third-round submission at UFC Fight Night 127 in March 2018.