Ex-UFC fighter Rhys McKee is set to headline Cage Warriors' Belfast show this summer, the Irish Mirror can reveal.
The Ballymena fighter (11-4-1) will face Englishman Justin Burlinson (7-1) for the promotion's welterweight title at the SSE Arena on June 25.
The belt was vacated by Ian Garry when he moved from the promotion to the UFC last year, with the Dubliner winning his second bout in America earlier this month.
McKee fought twice in the UFC in 2020, losing both bouts, but one of those defeats came against Khamzat Chimaev, who remains undefeated and is now ranked third in the UFC's welterweight rankings.
McKee will be aiming to make it back-to-back wins as he bids to show that he still has UFC potential, despite being released by the organisation following those two defeats.
Burlinson also has UFC ambitions. He recently scored an impressive win over Daniel Skibiński in the main event at Cage Warriors 135 in Manchester, which saw him bounce back from the first defeat of his career. That came last November on Dana White's Contender Series at the hands Yohan Lainesse, who makes his UFC debut in Las Vegas later this month.
The Cage Warriors welterweight belt has been a ticket to the UFC for many fighters, such as Garry, Mason Jones, Cathal Pendred and Nicolas Dalby. Burlinson is also hoping to become the first Englishman to claim the CW 170-pound title since Dan Hardy.
Conor McGregor also previously fought in the promotion, winning both their featherweight and lightweight belts before signing with the UFC.
- Tickets for Cage Warriors' debut show in Belfast are on sale now via Ticketmaster.
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