The former
Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight will face David
Zawada in an 84-kilogram (185-pound) wrestling rematch under
the AIGA banner in Istanbul, Turkey. The match is scheduled for ORA
Arena on Sept. 20 as part of the Global Grappling Series 2026.

Abubakar Nurmagomedov faces former UFC opponent David Zawada in
Istanbul

They previously met in the Octagon in November 2019 at
UFC Moscow, where Zawada submitted Nurmagomedov via first-round
triangle choke.

Nurmagomedov went 2-2 during his UFC tenure. His most recent MMA
appearance came back in June 2023, when he dropped a split decision
to Elizeu
Zaleski dos Santos.

Zawada, meanwhile, will look to repeat the result of their first
meeting. The German veteran went 1-4 in the UFC, with his lone
victory in the promotion coming against the Dagestani in Russia.
He's also competed in Oktagon
MMA, the
Professional Fighters League and
KSW.

Zawada's last MMA bout went down on Aug. 1, when he lost to
David
Kozma under the Oktagon banner.

The undefeated prospect will make his Octagon debut against fellow
promotional newcomer Nilson
Rojas at
UFC Shanghai on Aug. 29, with the significance of the date not
lost on Hasan.

Bilal Hasan plans a special walkout for his UFC Shanghai fight
against Nilson Rojas

Hasan takes on Rojas on Michael Jackson’s birthday, a coincidence
he described as almost prophetic.

“It still feels so surreal to be halfway across the world fighting
in China on August 29th on Michael Jackson’s birthday,†Hasan said
in a recent interview. “Sounds like something out of like a
prophecy or something like that. It still doesn’t feel real.â€

Hasan, a big fan of “The King of Pop,†plans to make the occasion
memorable with his walkout.

“I have a sick walkout planned,†he added.

The matchup will open the UFC Shanghai main card, giving Hasan his
first opportunity to compete since earning his contract on
Week 1 of
Dana White's Contender Series Season 10.

Rojas will also make his UFC debut at the event, pitting two
unbeaten prospects against one another. Hasan has emphasized that
he wants to do more than simply win, aiming to give fans a complete
performance.

“They’re going to expect a performance from start to finish,†Hasan
said. “They’re going to be watching every second of it and they’re
going to be seeing me enjoying every second of it.â€

Kayla Harrison is the reigning UFC bantamweight champ but has a good chance of claiming a scalp that may vault her to GOAT status, according to a former opponent. The referenced combatant is Aspen Ladd, who fought the multi-time Olympic gold medalist in the PFL Smart Cage when Harrison mostly fought at lightweight and occasionally featherweight.

Aspen Ladd is now entering her sophomore bare-knuckle boxing bout as she makes her debut in the BKB Mighty Trigon this weekend. Ladd battles former BKB title challenger Bianca Daimoni at BKB 58 in Miami on August 29th. During a late-June interview on Bowks Talking Bouts, Cris Cyborg teased that we could perhaps see a Fall booking for the long-awaited Kayla Harrison taking on the iconic Amanda Nunes.

Offering up her thoughts on that generational title clash at 135 pounds, Ladd said [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],

“That one's a tough one only because if it was prime Amanda Nunes when she was hungry, she was champ. I think she would take it. But she's been out of it for a long time. She's made astronomical amounts of money. If she doesn't have that same fire, Kayla will handle her. We've seen that happen before with; it's been a very long time. She went on what the kids would call a generational run, right?â€

“But she can be broken and she can lose. If she's put into a bad position, we've seen her break. After so long, but also Kayla's coming back from a big surgery. So she needs to come back fully from that. So, it's hard. Prime Amanda Nunes, I'd say Amanda. Right now, I'd say Kayla.â€

 For Kayla Harrison “there's not a single woman in that division that will challenge herâ€, per Aspen Ladd

A headline from Sherdog circa May 2024 saw Ladd quip that nobody in the UFC's bantamweight division will beat Kayla Harrison. With it being over two years after this sentiment was mentioned, when asked again if she still feels that way about the decorated combat athlete's dominance among her peers at 135 pounds in the Ultimate Fighting Championship today, Ladd stated [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],

“They asked me that and I remember telling them that no, not a single one will be able to out grapple her. They'll give her Ketlen Vieira and Ketlen will be able to survive her, but she won't she won't come out with a win. No, there's not a single woman in that division that will challenge her right now.â€

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