With Fabricio Werdum currently sidelined while he deals with a potential USADA suspension,Mark Hunt could step in to take his place in Moscow.
Sources told MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani that a matchup between Hunt and Werdum’s originally scheduled opponent Aleksei Oleinik is in the works to headline the UFC’s debut in the Russian capital, which is set to take place on Sept. 15.
The possibility of Hunt’s involvement was first reported by MMATeamDagestan.
Matchmakers were forced to move on from the Werdum-Oleinik matchup after Werdum was provisionally suspended by the USADA.
Oleinik (56-11-1) recently added to his impressive list of submission accolades at UFC 224, scoring a second win inside the Octagon via Ezekiel choke when he tapped out Junior Albini in under two minutes. The 40-year-old Ukrainian has won three of his last four fights. He currently trains in Russia.
Currently in a slump with just one win in his last four outings, Hunt (13-12-1, 1 NC) competes for the first time since dropping a unanimous decision to Curtis Blaydes at UFC 221 in February. Prior to that loss, he defeated Derrick Lewis by fourth-round TKO last June. This will be Hunt’s first time competing in Russia in his 14-year MMA career.
