Alexander Volkov needed a new opponent for UFC Fight Night Moscow after the withdrawal of former UFC Heavyweight Champion Junior Dos Santos and now he has one because Greg Hardy has accepted the short notice opportunity.
Brett Okamoto of ESPN first reported the news, while also reporting that a featherweight division attraction between Zabit Magomedsharipov and Calvin Kattar will headline the show, but it will stay a three round affair.
Volkov (30-7-0) is looking to rebound from his first UFC loss, which came to Derrick Lewis via third round knockout at UFC 229. Volkov is also going to be back in action for the first time in over a year, as his last bout took place in October of 2018. Volkov is a former Bellator MMA Heavyweight Champion, defeating Rich Hale to win the gold at Bellator 84.
Hardy (5-1-0-1NC) has won two of four under the UFC banner, with those victories coming over the duo of Dmitry Smoliakov and Juan Adams. Hardy is coming off of a controversial bout at UFC Fight Night Boston, which was ruled a no contest due to an illegal inhaler usage by Hardy. Hardy has picked up five wins as a professional MMA fighter and all of them have come by way of KO/TKO.
UFC Fight Night Moscow takes place on Saturday, November 9 from the CSKA Arena in Moscow, Russia with Zabit Magomedsharipov and Calvin Kattar headlining. Fightful is going to be providing live coverage of the event, which streams live on ESPN+.
