UFC 280 Update: Jailton Almeida, Shamil Abdurakhimov to Clash in Abu Dhabi

Jailton Almeida and Shamil Abdurakhimov will lock horns at UFC 280 in Abu Dhabi on Oct. 22.

Almeida confirmed the heavyweight booking on his Instagram account following an initial report from AgFight. Almedia and Abdurakhimov were initially slated to square off at UFC 279 before Abdurakhimov was forced to withdraw from the event due to visa issues.

Almeida has been on a tear since earning a UFC contract with a second-round submission of Nasrudin Nasrudinov on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2021. He has kicked off his promotional tenure with first-round finishes of Danilo Marques, Parker Porter and Anton Turkalj. The 31-year-old Brazilian known as “Malhadinho” has won his last 12 professional outings overall.

The 41-year-old Abdurakhimov will enter the matchup with Almeida on a three-bout skid in the Octagon. The Dagestani last appeared at UFC Fight Night 204 on March 19, when he suffered a first-round TKO loss to Sergei Pavlovich. Abdurakhimov is 5-5 in UFC competition, with wins over the likes of Marcin Tybura, Andrei Arlovski and Walt Harris.

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