UFC heavyweight contender Sergei Pavlovich will have the chance for redemption when he returns to Saudi Arabia early next year.
Pavlovich (18-3) fell to the first losing skid of his career last time out in Riyadh, where his former training partner Alexander Volkov stifled his power en route to a comfortable unanimous decision victory.
That result followed a short-notice interim title defeat to Tom Aspinall last November at Madison Square Garden, where Pavlovich’s championship hopes were dashed by way of knockout in the very first round.
With that, the Russian’s streak of six straight first-round finishes and impressive performance against Curtis Blaydes have become a distant memory. But, he will look to change that and remind the division of his brutal power in 2025.
Per MMA Mania’s Alex Behunin, the #4-ranked contender will return to the Kingdom Arena on Feb. 1, 2025, this time to throw down with Jairzinho Rozenstruik (15-5).
While Pavlovich will ride a losing skid into the contest, Rozenstruik is currently on his first win streak since having his undefeated record blemished by Francis Ngannou back in May 2020.
“Bigi Boy” went on an inconsistent run in the years that followed before finally stringing together wins this year with a knockout triumph over Shamil Gaziev and split decision against Tai Tuivasa.
Having cemented his spot inside the heavyweight top 10 in 2024, the Surinamese knockout artist will have the chance to return to title contention with a big performance opposite Pavlovich in Saudi Arabia.
