UFC fan favorite light heavyweight is ready to return to action when he steps into the Octagon at the upcoming UFC Saudi Arabia card.
UFC Saudi Arabia is set to take place on December 5, and Cutelaba will be on the card when he takes on undefeated prospect Magomed Tuchalov.
Ion Cutelaba vs. Magomed Tuchalov Added to UFC Saudi Arabia
Per MMAjunkie.com’s Nolan King, the UFC has added Cutelaba to the upcoming UFC Saudi Arabia card against Tuchalov.
While the organization has not officially announced the UFC Saudi Arabia card yet, it is expected to do so soon, as UFC president Dana White said he was not worried about the promotion traveling to the Middle East right now despite the issues going on in that part of the world at the moment.
The main event of the UFC Saudi Arabia card is expected to be a five-round bout between former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya and Shara Magomedov, but again, that fight has not yet been made official by the organization.
Ion Cutelaba vs. Magomed Tuchalov Quick Breakdown
Cutelaba is a 32-year-old native of Moldova who has been on the UFC roster since 2016. In the decade since he made his promotional debut for the world’s top MMA organization, Cutelaba has a 9-11-1 record inside the Octagon.
While that isn’t a great record by any means, he is often involved in very fun and exciting fights, which is why he has been able to stay on the roster for as long as he has despite a sub .500 record. In Cutelaba’s last fight, he was knocked out by Navajo Stirling, who could be the future UFC light heavyweight champion of the world, and a loss that doesn’t look so bad in hindsight given what Stirling has been doing as of late.
As for Tuchalov, he is a 26-year-old Russian fighter who is 7-0 in his MMA career so far. He made his UFC debut against Brendson Ribeiro earlier this year at UFC Baku and won a unanimous decision in that fight. Now, he gets a step up in competition against a fan favorite in Cutelaba.
Fan Favorite Ion Cutelaba Returns at UFC Saudi Arabaia