Ilir Latifi’s heavyweight run continues.
The former UFC light heavyweight contender is expected to return to the cage against Rodrigo Nascimento as they will join the lineup for a UFC Fight Night on May 20. The location and venue for the event have yet to be announced.
Two people with knowledge of the situation informed MMA Junkie of the matchup on Wednesday but requested anonymity since the UFC has yet to make an announcement.
Latifi (16-8 MMA, 9-6 UFC) is currently on a two-fight winning streak. After losing a decision to Derrick Lewis in his return to the heavyweight division, Latifi has outpointed Tanner Boser and most recently Aleksei Oleinik. In his last fight against Oleinik this past October, Latifi was suspended for three months by the Nevada Athletic Commission for revealing he had staph infection in his post-fight interview – something he didn’t disclose to the NAC prior to the fight.
Nascimento (9-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) is also fresh off a win over Boser. The Brazilian defeated him by split decision in his most recent outing back in September.
Prior to that, Nascimento had gone over a year without competing as he served a six-month suspension by the NAC after testing positive ritalinic acid, a metabolite of methylphenidate, which is a banned stimulant. His TKO win over Alan Baudot was overturned to a no contest in consequence of the positive test.
The updated lineup for the UFC’s May 20 event includes:
- Vanessa Demopoulos vs. Karolina Kowalkiewicz
- Anthony Hernandez vs. Edmen Shahbazyan
- Ilir Latifi vs. Rodrigo Nascimento
