UFC 303 will now include a light heavyweight bout between former champion Jamahal Hill and No. 8 contender Khalil Rountree, the UFC announced on Friday.
The announcement comes just six days after Hill (12-0-0) headlined a historic UFC 300 card in which he lost to current champion Alex Pereira. Hill was looking to earn back his title after being forced to vacate it due to an achilles injury in July of last year.
Hill's attempt to retain the title ended up lasting three minutes after a left hook from Poatan sent the 32-year-old to the ground and ended the contest. Now Hill looks to begin a new climb to the top as the third-ranked contender in the division.
Meanwhile, Rountree (13-5-0) enters this bout on a six-fight win streak. His most recent victory came thanks to a third-round knockout on Anthony Smith on Dec. 2023.
Known as one of the most violent fighters under the UFC banner, seven of his nine UFC victories coming by way of KO/TKO, Rountree will provide a great matchup for the former champion. He may not be used to the bright lights however, as Rountree's last fight on a PPV card was in 2021 for UFC 257 Poirier vs. McGregor.
Coincidentally, Rountree will now fight on another card headlined by the Irishman as Connor McGregor will take on Michael Chandler for the UFC 303 main event on Jun. 29 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The PPV will be part of International Fight Week, with the card also featuring a pair of Canadians, Marc-Andre Barriault and Gillian Robertson.
COMMENTS
When submitting content, please abide by our submission guidelines, and avoid posting profanity, personal attacks or harassment. Should you violate our submissions guidelines, we reserve the right to remove your comments and block your account. Sportsnet reserves the right to close a story’s comment section at any time.