This week’s UFC return has a late change to the lineup in “Sin City.”
Joanderson Brito (13-3-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) was set to fight Melsik Baghdasaryan (7-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) until he suffered a broken hand. Now Brito will fight promotional newcomer Lucas Alexander (7-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC) at UFC Fight Night 212.
MMA Junkie confirmed the targeted new matchup with a person with knowledge of the booking, who asked to remain anonymous since it hasn’t been formally announced by the UFC. UFC Fight Night 212 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card streams on ESPN+.
Alexander, from Brazil, got some eyeballs on him in February with a TKO win on UFC Fight Pass at the debut fight card of Anthony Pettis’ new MMA promotion. The win was the 27-year-old’s fifth straight.
Brito made his way to the UFC starting on Dana White’s Contender Series in August 2021. In January, he dropped a decision to Bill Algeo in his promotional debut, which snapped a 12-fight unbeaten streak. But in April, he bounced back in a big way with a 41-second knockout of longtime UFC fighter Andre Fili and picked up a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus.
Baghdasaryan has been out of action for 11 months. After a DWCS win in 2020, he picked up 2021 UFC wins over Collin Anglin, which won a $50,000 bonus, and Bruno Souza. He was set to return against T.J. Laramie in April, but pulled out. And for the Brito fight, he’s out again.
With the change, the UFC Fight Night 212 lineup now includes:
MAIN CARD (ESPN+, 7 p.m. ET)
- Alexa Grasso vs. Viviane Araujo
- Jonathan Martinez vs. Cub Swanson
- Askar Askarov vs. Brandon Royval
- Dusko Todorovic vs. Jordan Wright
- Misha Cirkunov vs. Alonzo Menifield
- Brandon Davis vs. Mana Martinez
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 4 p.m. ET)
- Lucas Alexander vs. Joanderson Brito
- Jacob Malkoun vs. Nick Maximov
- Raphael Assuncao vs. Victor Henry
- Sam Hughes vs. Piera Rodriguez
- Tatsuro Taira vs. CJ Vergara
- Mike Jackson vs. Pete Rodriguez
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 212.
