UFC Charlotte has a new main event.
The May 13th “Fight Night” card was originally set to be headlined by a light heavyweight tilt between Anthony Smith and Johnny Walker. That bout has now been bumped down a spot to make room for the Jairzinho Rozenstruik vs. Jailton Almeida heavyweight fight.
No reason was given for the switch up, but Smith recently commented on the downgrade in a statement to MMAFighting.
“The UFC contacted my manager yesterday and said we were getting bumped to co-main event and the fight would now be three rounds,” Smith said. “I wasn’t told who the new main event would be. It is what it is.”
“First fight of the night, last fight of the night or somewhere in between — it makes no difference to me,” Smith continued. “I’m focused on only myself and the things I can control.”
Both Smith vs. Walker and Rozenstruik vs. Almeida are respectable Fight Night headline bouts. Neither looks odd at the top of a card. It is a bit strange, though, to see the UFC swap out a main event after locking it in.
If anything, it points to how hot the promotion is on Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Jailton Almeida. “Bigi Boi” is a hard-hitting knockout artist with a string of quick finishes. Almeida is on an impressive 13-fight winning streak.
While we’re not so sure we’d want to see them fight a full five rounds over Smith and Walker, the UFC sure does love to put big dudes in the headlining spot. And it doesn’t get much bigger than “Bigi Boi” and “Malhadinho.”