Ali Alqaisi will look to collect a third title since departing from the UFC.
Alqaisi (11-5), the Titan FC and UAE Warriors featherweight champion, will take on Ahmed Faress (16-4) for the inaugural UAE Warriors Arabia 145-pound title. The matchup will co-headline UAE Warriors 27: Arabia on March 25. The card takes place at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi and streams live on UFC Fight Pass.
A person with knowledge of the matchup recently informed MMA Junkie of the booking but asked to remain anonymous since the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Since parting ways with the UFC in 2020, Jordan’s Alqaisi moved up to 145 pounds and has won three straight. Alqaisi defeated Andrew Whitney to capture the vacant Titan FC featherweight title this past August, then turned around just two months later to capture the UAE Warriors featherweight title by beating Do Gyeom Lee at UAE Warriors 24.
Faress is coming off a split decision loss to Edward Kelly at “ONE Championship: Full Blast” this past May. Prior to that, the 30-year-old Egyptian fighter scored back-to-back stoppages over Amir Nour and veteran Alan Philpott.