The first UFC match for 2022 will kick off with a featherweight banger! Top 10 fighters Calvin Kattar (#5) and Giga Chikadze (#8) will headline the match this January. The pair will meet for the first time in their careers. Chikadze looks to extend his impressive seven-straight streak, while Kattar hopes to bounce back after his recent loss to Holloway. Can Chizadze pull out another win, or will Kattar find redemption?
Kattar will fight to get back into the win column after losing to former champion, Max Holloway, in his last appearance. The fight was an intense five-rounder, but ended by unanimous decision to Holloway.
The defeat broke Kattar's two-fight winning streak where he took down Jeremy Stephens and Dan Ige. Prior, he picked up four wins (to Ricardo Lamas, Chris Fishgold, Shane Burgos and Andre Fili) and two losses.
Opposing him will be Chikadze, who is only three spots behind. The #8 ranked contender is backed by seven straight wins and has defeated the likes of Edson Barboza, Cub Swanson, and Jamey Simmons — all of which he finished off by knockout.
Recently he expressed his disappointment at his fighter rankings to MMA Junkie, but no doubt looks to fight his way to the top 5 where the likes of Brian Ortega, Volkanovski and Holloway stand.
“When you beat somebody like Edson Barboza and you are No. 10 and he’s No. 9, you don’t just go one more and become No. 8. I have to be somewhere in the top five.”
Who will get closer to a shot at the title belt?
Undercards TBC