Gavin Hughes will make his Cage Warriors debut on April 15 in Manchester.
The Liverpool native will take on Chris Bungard and it will be his first fight for Cage Warriors after signing a five-fight deal with the European promotion.
The two had previously fought one another in 2016 at Absolute Championship Berkut 47. It was a bout that ended with Hughes getting the better of Bungard in the first round.
Since that fight, both men have gone on to have careers in Bellator, one of the biggest MMA promotions in the world, and now meet at Cage Warriors.
Hughes, nicknamed 'Big Tasty', made his Bellator debut against Mohammad Yahya in 2019, winning by rear naked choke, with Bungard, nicknamed 'The Bad Guy', making his debut in the promotion that same year.
Now in the Cage Warriors lightweight division, the two are set to clash in April. Originally the bout was pencilled in for last November. However, Hughes was forced out due to injury. Due to this, Bungard found himself faced with a new opponent - champion George Hardwick. 'The Bad Guy' lost via a second-round body shot and so will be looking to bounce back with a very tough opponent in 'Big Tasty'.
A chance at the Cage Warriors lightweight belt is in sight for Hughes, if he is to make a statement and go 2-0 against his former foe.
As well as being the head coach of Titanium Combat Academy in Netherley, the 35-year-old is now taking advantage of the city's variety of high-level fighters by also training at Next Generation MMA alongside some of the best Liverpool and the UFC have to offer.
Hughes, who has competed all over the world, and now gets to represent Liverpool in the Northwest of England, confirmed to the ECHO that his clash with Bungard will be taking place on April 15 in Manchester Cage Warriors 152.
