Nikita Krylov-Ryan Spann Rumble to Headline UFC Fight Night Event on Feb. 25

One of these surging Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweights may be a win away from a crack at gold after this melee.

On Thursday, MMA Junkie first broke the news that the UFC event on Feb. 25 has its marquee attraction. Coming to blows in the light heavyweight division, Nikita Krylov (29-9) will throw down with Ryan Spann (21-7) in a contest that will receive five rounds if necessary. The specific venue and location have not yet been announced. The fight has since been confirmed by other outlets.

Krylov finds himself on his first win streak inside the Octagon since his five-win stretch from 2014 to 2016. In July, Krylov flattened former title challenger Alexander Gustafsson in 67 seconds, and he went on to outwork Volkan Oezdemir by decision three months later. Before that pair of wins, Krylov had fallen short to Paul Craig and Magomed Ankalaev, losing to the former by the Scot’s vaunted triangle choke. As a pro, “The Miner” posts a stellar finish rate of 93%, with his lone two career decision victories occurring in his last three wins.

Fortis MMA product Spann admitted after his last performance – an 80-second drubbing of Dominick Reyes – that he had finally started training seriously. That destruction of Reyes put his own win streak to two, as he had previously throttled Ion Cutelaba with a guillotine choke in May. Prior to those first-round stoppages, the Texan had dropped two of three, including finish losses to Anthony Smith and Johnny Walker. Each of the last five appearances for Spann have concluded in the first round, win or lose. While not as high as his opponent’s, “Superman” celebrates his own impressive stoppage rate of 86%.

The UFC Fight Night card on Feb. 25 does not have a numbered designation, corresponding to whether it will be airing on the ESPN networks or ESPN+. It similarly does not yet have an official location. In addition to the newly announced main event, a few fights are already on the books: a bantamweight scrap pitting newcomer Hailey Cowan against Ailin Perez, a flyweight contest featuring Ode Osbourne vs. Denys Bondar and a 155-pound affair as Jordan Leavitt takes on Victor Martinez.Jasmine Jasudavicius vs Cortney Casey Andre Fili vs Lucas Almeida Andre Muniz vs Brendan Allen Augusto Sakai vs Don'Tale Mayes