Lyoto Machida protege, LFA champ Bruno Souza to fight Melsik Baghdasaryan at UFC 268
Another LFA champion has entered the ranks of the UFC.
LFA featherweight champion Bruno Souza has signed with the promotion and will Saturday face Melsik Baghdasaryan on Saturday at UFC 268 from Madison Square Garden in New York.
A person with knowledge of the matchup confirmed the booking to MMA Junkie but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. MMA DNA was first to report the news.
Souza (10-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) replaces Canada’s T.J. Laramie, who withdrew from the originally scheduled matchup vs. Baghdasaryan (12-4 MMA, 1-0 UFC) due to a MRSA infection.
Nicknamed “The Tiger,” Souza is a protege of former UFC light heavyweight champion “The Dragon” Lyoto Machida. At LFA 114 in August, Souza clinched the LFA title at age 25 when he defeated Javier Garcia by unanimous decision. The victory extended his streak to nine, a stretch that includes wins over UFC fighter Kamuela Kirk and Bellator fighter Mike Hamel.
As for Baghdasaryan, the Dana White’s Contender Series standout won his promotional debut in July when he flattened Collin Anglin with a second-round head kick. With a kickboxing background, Baghdasaryan has won five of his six professional victories by knockout or TKO.
With the addition, the UFC 268 lineup includes:
MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)
Champ Kamaru Usman vs. Colby Covington – for welterweight title
Champ Rose Namajunas vs. Zhang Weili – for women’s strawweight title
Michael Chandler vs. Justin Gaethje
Shane Burgos vs. Billy Quarantillo
Frankie Edgar vs. Marlon Vera
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPNews/ESPN+, 8 p.m. ET)
Andreas Michailidis vs. Alex Pereira
Bobby Green vs. Al Iaquinta
Chris Curtis vs. Phil Hawes
Nassourdine Imavov vs. Edmen Shahbazyan
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 6 p.m. ET)
Ian Garry vs. Jordan Williams
Chris Barnett vs. Gian Villante
John Allan vs. Aleksa Camur
Melsik Baghdasaryan vs. Bruno Souza
Ode Osbourne vs. CJ Vergara
