TWO of the best heavyweight fighters to step into the UFC Octagon will go toe to toe in a huge UFC Fight Night main event on mainland Europe.
American Josh ‘The Warmaster’ Barnett will take on Belarusian Andrei ‘Pitbull’ Arlovski in the main event on September 3 as the UFC makes its debut in Hamburg, Germany.
Both men are former UFC heavyweight world champions and both are desperate to propel themselves back into title contention in the veteran stages of their respective careers.
Chicago-based Arlovski recently lost out to teammate Alistair Overeem in Rotterdam, but remains one of the top heavyweights in the UFC, with significant recent wins over Travis Browne, Frank Mir and Antonio ‘Bigfoot’ Silva.
He’ll take on Californian Barnett, a former world champion who also dabbles in the world of professional wrestling and even took part in an impromptu wrestling match during the open workouts for his last bout.
A huge fan of British culture, Barnett has previously chatted to SunSport about everything from Red Dwarf to Blackadder to even wanting legendary British actor Brian Blessed as his personal Octagon announcer.
But inside the cage ‘The Warmaster’ is all business, and remains one of the most dangerous men in the UFC’s biggest weight class, with victories over the likes of Mir and Mark Hunt during a 19-year professional career.
Between them the pair have amassed 80 professional bouts, winning 48 of those bouts inside the distance by either knockout or submission.
SunSport can also confirm rising European light-heavyweight star Ilir ‘The Sledgehammer’ Latifi will return to action in the biggest bout of his mixed martial arts career.
The big Swede will take on light-heavyweight contender – and former winner of The Ultimate Fighter – Ryan ‘Darth’ Bader in a battle between two of the division’s powerhouse athletes.
UFC Fight Night: Arlovski v Barnett takes place at the Barclaycard Arena, Hamburg, on Saturday September 3.
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