London, UK – UFC® has today announced an explosive co-main event match up for its return to Dublin on Saturday, October 24.
Stipe Miocic and Ben Rothwell, the No.3 and No.7 ranked UFC heavyweights respectively, will go head to head in a bout which will undoubtedly have huge implications for the division.
Both Miocic and Rothwell have made no secret of their desire to fight for the world title and, with both fighters enjoying recent wins over some of the heavyweight division’s biggest talents, the winner of this bout could well catapult themselves straight into title contention.
Ohio-born Miocic (12-2-0), who is of Croatian descent, secured a TKO win over Mark “Super Samoan” Hunt in May of this year, setting a new UFC record for the highest number of strikes landed in a single bout, along the way. Prior to that, despite suffering a decision loss to Junior Dos Santos, Miocic had picked up impressive wins over top ranked opponents including Roy “Big Country” Nelson, Gabriel “Napao” Gonzaga and Fabio Maldonado.
Rothwell, meanwhile, (35-9-0) heads to Dublin on the back of three straight wins. Having secured finishes over Brandon Vera, Alistair “The Reem” Overeem and Matt Mitrione all in the past two years, Rothwell will no doubt be looking for a fourth finish to add to that list on October 24th.
Miocic and Rothwell will meet in the co-main event at UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: POIRIER vs. DUFFY, which will take place at the 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland.
Confirmed to headline the fight card is Ireland’s own Joseph “Irish” Duffy, who faces the biggest challenge of his professional career to date, as he takes on top 15 ranked UFC lightweight, Dustin “The Diamond” Poirier over five rounds.
Also featuring on this Dublin card is Irish welterweight Cathal Pendred, who meets unbeaten British newcomer, Tom Breese. Northern Ireland’s “Stormin” Norman Parke will also compete on the night, as he meets Sweden’s Reza “Mad Dog” Madadi, a favourite amongst European fight fans.
With both Parke and Pendred achieving dominant wins in front of Irish fans in Dublin last year, both will undoubtedly be looking to replicate that success again this time.
Another Englishman – Darren Till – will also make the short journey to Dublin to compete on October 24th. Having stormed onto the scene at UFC FIGHT NIGHT: CONDIT vs. ALVES back in May, Till picked up a round two TKO finish over Wendell Oliveira. Till will meet Denmark’s Nicolas “Sharpshooter” Dalby in what will be his second UFC bout to date.
UFC FIGHT NIGHT: POIRIER vs. DUFFY marks the UFC’s return to Dublin, following a hugely successful event – UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: McGREGOR vs. BRANDAO – in July 2014. Tickets to the 2014 event sold out in under an hour and a similar response is expected from fans this year when tickets are released.
Tickets for UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: POIRIER vs. DUFFY will go on sale to UFC FIGHT CLUB members at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, September 2 with general sale taking place from 12:00 p.m. on September 4.
Updated UFC Dublin Card
Joseph Duffy vs. Dustin Poirer
Stipe Miocic vs. Ben Rothwell
Cathal Pendred vs. Tom Breese
Norman Parke vs. Reza Madadi
Scott Askham vs. Krzysztof Jotko
Garreth McLellan vs. Bubba Bush
Darren Till vs. Nicolas Dalby
Tickets will become available to UFC Newsletter subscribers on Friday, September 4 at 10:00 a.m. IST with general sale taking place from 12:00 p.m. IST.
In order to avoid disappointment, fans are encouraged to register their interest via this LINK for UFC FIGHT NIGHT: POIRIER vs. DUFFY to receive information and reminders about the ticket sale.
