Two veteran bantamweights will throw down at the UFC Apex.
At UFC Fight Night 254 on March 15, Da'Mon Blackshear and Cody Gibson will aim to build off recent wins when they fight each other in Las Vegas.
Two people with knowledge of the matchup recently informed MMA Junkie of the matchup but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Blacksear (15-7-1 MMA, 3-1-1 UFC) snapped a two-fight skid in November when he tapped Cody Stamann in the first round. He moved to 3-2 in his most recent five. That stretch includes a 2023 Submission of the Year candidate twister against Jose Johnson.
Gibson (21-10 MMA, 3-5 UFC) is on the first UFC winning streak in his second promotional stint. After a 1-3 stretch with the promotion from 2014 to 2015, Gibson returned in 2023 as a bantamweight finalist of “The Ultimate Fighter 31.” Though he lost to Brad Katona in the final, the bout earned Fight of the Night honors. Since a loss to Miles Johns, Gibson has won back-to-back fights against Brian Kelleher and Chad Anheliger.
With the addition, the UFC Fight Night 254 lineup includes:
- Waldo Cortes-Acosta vs. Ryan Spann
- Daniel Barez vs. Andre Lima
- Yuneisy Duben vs. Carli Judice
- Sam Hughes vs. Stephanie Luciano
- Diyar Nurgozhay vs. Brendson Ribeiro
- Da’Mon Blackshear vs. Cody Gibson
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 254.
