The UFC is making a habit of bringing big matchups to the mountains when it touches down in Utah.
That will be the case again in October at UFC 307. The promotion Friday announced a pair of title fights for the top of the bill in Salt Lake City, some top-shelf previously reported matchups, and a pair of fan-friendly new bookings.
Roman Dolidze (13-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC) will take on Kevin Holland (26-11 MMA, 13-8 UFC) at middleweight. And at welterweight, Joaquin Buckley (19-6 MMA, 9-4 UFC) meets two-time title challenger Stephen Thompson (17-7-1 MMA, 12-7-1 UFC). Just like the UFC 300 and UFC 303 cards light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira headlined earlier this year, UFC 307 is shaping up to be another all-star game of sorts for the promotion.
UFC 307, headlined by Pereira vs. Khalil Rountree and women’s bantamweight champion Raquel Pennington vs. Julianna Peña, takes place Oct. 5 at Delta Center in Salt Lake City (pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+).
Dolidze got back in the win column in late June when he outworked Anthony Smith at UFC 303. The Las Vegas-based fighter had been working off back-to-back losses, but now he’ll chase his first winning streak since 2022.
Holland, one of the UFC’s busiest fighters, was supposed to take on Chris Curtis until the matchup was lost to an injury. He’ll get Dolidze, instead, and will be chasing another winning streak of his own. After decision losses to Jack Della Maddalena and Michael Page, Holland rebounded at UFC 302 with a bonus-winning armbar submission of Michal Oleksiejczuk.
Buckley has been on a tear with four straight wins on the heels of back-to-back losses to Nassourdine Imavov and Chris Curtis in 2022. In 2023, he took out Andre Fialho with a head kick and outworked Alex Morono. And already this year, he pounded out Vicente Luque in March and took a decision from Nursulton Ruziboev in May, giving him a shot at a 3-0 year if he runs his streak to five.
“Wonderboy” Thompson, considered one of the best strikers in the UFC, has dropped three of his past four. At UFC 296 in December 2023, he was submitted by Shavkat Rakhmonov. It was the first time he was submitted, and just the second time he was finished.
With the additions, the UFC 307 lineup includes:
- Champ Alex Pereira vs. Khalil Rountree – for light heavyweight title
- Champ Raquel Pennington vs. Julianna Peña – for women’s bantamweight title
- Movsar Evloev vs. Aljamain Sterling
- Jose Aldo vs. Mario Bautista
- Kayla Harrison vs. Ketlen Vieira
- Roman Dolidze vs. Kevin Holland
- Kevin Buckley vs. Stephen Thompson
- Carla Esparza vs. Tecia Pennington
- Iasmin Lucindo vs. Marina Rodriguez
- Cesar Almeida vs. Ihor Potieria
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 307.
