Icelandic fighter Gunnar “Gunni” Nelson has drawn the headline spot for UFC Glasgow on July 16, where he will face Argentine Santiago Ponzinibbio.
The UFC announced the fight on Friday morning.
Ranked No.9 in the UFC welterweight rankings, Gunni (16-2-1) will be looking to build on his superlative second round submission choke over Alan Jouban in March, as he continues his search for a 170lb title shot.
Including his victory at UFC London, Nelson has back-to-back wins inside the Octagon, but it could be argued that the momentum is on opponent Ponzinibbio’s side, as he heads to Glasgow in search of his fifth consecutive win.
30-year-old Ponzinibbio (24-3) in an eight-fight UFC veteran and has beaten a whole host of relevant promotional names including Sean Strickland, Court McGee and Zak Cummings.
Fighting out of Mjölnir gym and SBG Ireland, UFC Glasgow will be 28-year-old Gunni’s second UFC headline slot, with his last being October 2014 against Rick Story in Stockholm, Sweden. Nelson lost that fight by split decision.
Also announced for the event, Joanne Calderwood will get back inside the Octagon for the first time since a September 2016 loss to strawweight title contender Jéssica Andrade. In front of her home fans at The SSE Hydro, JoJo will face rising prospect, Cynthia Calvillo.
UFC Glasgow marks the promotion’s second event in Scotland, following their debut in July 2015.
This fight comes alongside a recent slew of additions, including a bantamweight contest between Brett Johns and Mitch Gagnon, Neil Seery’s retirement fight and Stevie Ray against Paul Felder.
