Chris Weidman vs. Omari Akhmedov Set For August 8

Weidman Facing Akhmedov In August

Former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman has a new opponent.

According to multiple media outlets confirming an initial report from TASS journalist Igor Lazorin, Weidman will meet Omari Akhmedov in the UFC’s upcoming August 8 event.

The event has no location as of now, but is expected to take place at the Apex facility in Las Vegas. A heavyweight matchup between Derrick Lewis and Aleksei Oleinik is the planned headliner for the card.

Both fighters have since confirmed the matchup:

“Fight announcement ! August 8th. Chris Weidman vs Omari Akhmedov! Lets go ! Excited to be fighting this tough Russian fighter. ”

Weidman is on a two-fight losing streak and has also suffered defeat in five of his last six outings — all coming by way of knockout. His most recent outing was a failed light heavyweight debut against Dominick Reyes back in October.

Akhmedov, meanwhile, is on a winning run. Having moved up from welterweight, the Russian is currently on a three-fight winning streak at 185 pounds, having most recently outpointed Ian Heinisch at UFC 245 in December.

Despite the winning run, Akhmedov is a step down from Weidman’s usual opponents as he isn’t even ranked as of now. That is a good thing for “The All American” who will be eager to earn his first win in nearly three years when he beat Kelvin Gastelum back in July 2017.

What do you think of this matchup?