Craig Kidwell-USA TODAY Sports


A light heavyweight clash pitting Volkan Oezdemir against Azamat Murzakanov
has been booked for UFC Paris.

Promotion officials announced the pairing on Wednesday. UFC Fight Night 226 takes place on Sept. 2 at Accor Arena in Paris and is headlined by a heavyweight showdown between Ciryl Gane and Sergey Spivak.

A former 205-pound title challenger, Oezdemir has lost three of his last four Octagon appearances. Most recently, the 33-year-old Switzerland native suffered a unanimous decision loss to Nikita Krylov at UFC 280 this past October. His ledger includes wins over the likes of Jimi Manuwa, Ovince St. Preux, Ilir Latifi and Aleksandar Rakic.

Murzakanov has yet to taste defeat in 13 professional outings. After besting PFL talent Matheus Scheffel on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2021, “The Professional” has kicked off his UFC tenure with triumphs over Tafon Nchukwi, Devin Clark and Dustin Jacoby.

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