Two light heavyweight bouts were added to UFC 236: a rematch between Ovince Saint Preux and Nikita Krylov and Eryk Anders vs. Khalil Rountree.
A couple of light heavyweight bouts with potential for fireworks were added to the upcoming UFC 236 card.
During the UFC Prague broadcast, it was announced that Ovince Saint Preux will rematch Nikita Krylov, an opponent ‘OSP’ already defeated in 2013, and former middleweight Eryk Anders will take on Khalil Rountree.
Alternating wins and losses for his last three bouts, Ovince Saint Preux (23-12) was bested via unanimous decision by Dominick Reyes in October 2018, but he finished prospect Tyson Pedro with a straight armbar submission just before the loss, back in June of the same year. OSP hasn’t put together a win streak since he won three fights in a row in 2017.
After spending some time in the Russian circuit, where he scored four wins in a row, including victories of notables names like former Bellator champion Emmanuel Newton and Octagon vet Fabio Maldonado, Nikita Krylov (24-6) did not have the start he expect to his second UFC stint, when he ended up submitted by Jan Blachowicz in September 2018. Despite the loss, the 26-year-old still has a positive UFC record and was on a five-fight winning streak before losing to Misha Cirkunov in December 2016.
Seemingly unsure of what weight class suits him better, Eryk Anders (11-3) will try a second shot at 205 after dropping a split decision to Elias Theodorou in a middleweight bout in December 2018. Before that, ‘Ya Boi’ was TKO’d by Thiago Santos in a light heavyweight bout he took on short notice in September of the same year.
Victim of hot prospect Johnny Walker’s highlight reel UFC debut, Khalil Rountree (7-3-1 NC) was knocked out early into the fight by the Brazilian back in November 2018, but had three wins in his last four fights prior to the loss. With knockout wins over Paul Craig, Daniel Jolly and Gokhan Saki, Rountree did suffer a unanimous decision defeat to Michal Oleksiejczuk, ended up overturned after his opponent tested positive for a banned substance.
UFC 236 takes place in Atlanta, Georgia on April 13th. The card will be headlined by an interim lightweight title fight between featherweight champion, Max Holloway, and contender Dustin Poirier.