Undefeated newcomer gets dangerous UFC 318 fight weeks after cancelled debut

Originally posted on MMA on SI | By Drew Beaupre | Last updated Jul 3, 2025 9:50 AM ET

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An undefeated prospect is stepping in to fight at UFC 318 after his original promotional debut fell through.

We're currently in the midst of a rare off-week for the UFC following a seismic UFC 317 card that took place during International Fight Week in Las Vegas, and the world’s leading MMA promotion returns next weekend with a card in Nashville before UFC 318 goes down in New Orleans the following Saturday.

UFC 318 is headlined by Dustin Poirier’s retirement fight against reigning “BMF” titleholder Max Holloway, which will see “The Diamond” try to close out his incredible career with a third victory over the Hawaiian.

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Jackson McVey Debuts vs. Brunno Ferreira at UFC 318

The event on July 19 unfortunately took a recent hit when Ikram Aliskerov pulled out of his middleweight bout with Brunno Ferreira, but Laerte Viana reports that Jackson McVey is stepping in to make his UFC debut against Ferreira at UFC 318.

Following a 6-1 amateur career, McVey turned pro in 2023 and has put together a 6-0 record that's seen him finish every one of his opponents inside the first round between the LFA and Shamrock FC.

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“The Moose” was booked to make his debut against Sedriques Dumas at UFC 317 before the latter fighter withdrew and was replaced by fellow UFC newcomer Christopher Ewert, but Ewert unfortunately wasn’t able to cut down to middleweight on short notice and the fight with McVey was scrapped on weigh-in day.

New Orleans Fans Get Fight Between Dangerous Finishers

Ewert already been rebooked to compete on Dana White’s Contender Series on August 12 against Yuri Panferov, while McVey gets another chance to make his Octagon debut against the hard-hitting Ferreira at UFC 318.

A six-fight UFC veteran that earned a contract on DWCS in 2022, Ferreira’s first four fights in the UFC all ended inside the opening round before he went to a third round with Abus Magomedov last October and lost via arm triangle choke.

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“Hulk” showed off his own skills on the mat at UFC 313 when he submitted Armen Petrosyan, and the Brazilian impressively still hasn’t seen the judges’ scorecards in a 15-fight professional career that began in 2019.

McVey and Ferreira’s respective records certainly indicate that the fans in New Orleans’ Smoothie King Center should be treated to a violent finish on July 19. With just over two weeks to go until the card, UFC 318 currently looks like this:

• Main Event: Max Holloway vs. Dustin Poirier 3 – For the UFC “BMF” Championship

• Michael Johnson vs. Daniel Zellhuber

• Ateba Gautier vs. Robert Valentin

• Dan Ige vs. Patricio Pibtull

• Paulo Costa vs. Roman Kopylov

• Marvin Vettori vs. Brendan Allen

• Adam Fugitt vs. Islam Dulatov

• Neil Magny vs. Gunnar Nelson

• Kyler Phillips vs. Vinicius Oliveira

• Carli Judice vs. Nicolle Caliari

• Jimmy Crute vs. Marcin Prachnio

• Francisco Prado vs. Nikolay Veretennikov

• Kevin Holland vs. Daniel Rodriguez

• Ryan Spann vs. Łukasz Brzeski

• Brunno Ferreira vs. Jackson McVey