Rinya Nakamura has his third UFC assignment.
A former Japanese wrestling standout and undefeated MMA fighter, Nakamura (8-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) returns vs. Brady Hiestand (7-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) at UFC 298, which takes place Feb. 17 at Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.
Both fighters recently confirmed the booking on social media after Hiestand’s management, Iridium Sports Agency, first posted the news.
🚨 #TeamIridium News 🚨
Our man @bradyHiestand1 is ready to bring home his 3rd straight @ufc victory vs. Rinya Nakamura at #UFC298 ✍🏼 #TheDarkside pic.twitter.com/Tss5sybICS
— IridiumSportsAgency (@TeamIridiumISA) December 18, 2023
Nakamura, 28, is the son of early combat sports orchestrator Kozo Nakamura. The COVID-19 pandemic limited his wrestling opportunities, so Nakamura turned to mixed martial arts and debuted in 2021. He won the Road to UFC tournament in 2022 with three knockouts in as many tournament outings. In August, he defeated Fernie Garcia by unanimous decision.
Hiestand, 24, has won back-to-back fights after an unsuccessful UFC debut vs. Ricky Turcios in the “TUF 29” bantamweight final in 2021. Hiestand lost to Turcios by split decision, then defeated Fernie Garcia and Danaa Batgerel in consecutive outings.
With the addition, the current UFC 298 lineup includes:
- Champion Alexander Volkanovski vs. Ilia Topuria
- Paulo Costa vs. Robert Whittaker
- Henry Cejudo vs. Merab Dvalishvili
- Ian Garry vs. Geoff Neal
- Amanda Lemos vs. Tatiana Suarez
- Tai Tuivasa vs. Marcin Tybura
- Ikram Aliskerov vs. Anthony Hernandez
- Andrea Lee vs. Miranda Maverick
- Marcos Rogerio de Lima vs. Justin Tafa
- Brady Hiestand vs. Rinya Nakamura
- Oban Elliott vs. Val Woodburn
- Danny Barlow vs. Yusaku Kinoshita
- Brendson Ribeiro vs. Mingyang Zhang
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 298.
