Blagoy Ivanov will finally be making the walk to the Octagon again.
Multiple sources have informed BJPENN.com that Ivanov will return at UFC 274 on May 7 against Marcos Rogerio de Lima at a location TBD. The fight has been in the works for a while and now it is finally a done deal. UFC 274 will see Glover Teixeira defend his light heavyweight belt against Jiri Prochazka while Charles Oliveira will defend his lightweight strap against Justin Gaethje.
Blagoy Ivanov (18-4 and one No Contest) is coming off back-to-back split decision losses to Augusto Sakai in May of 2020 and to Derrick Lewis at UFC 244. He’s currently just 2-3 in the UFC as in his promotional debut he lost to Junior dos Santos in the main event of a Fight Night card. Ivanov followed that up with decision victories over Ben Rothwell and Tai Tuivasa.
Prior to signing with the UFC, Ivanov was the former WSOF/PFL heavyweight champion. He defended the belt four times and holds notable wins over Shawn Jordan, Josh Copeland, and Lavar Johnson among others. The Bulgarian also competed in Bellator and lost to Alexander Volkov in the season 10 heavyweight finals. He’s currently ranked 13th in the UFC rankings.
Marcos Rogerio de Lima (19-7-1) is riding a two-fight winning streak and coming off a first-round TKO win over Ben Rothwell back in November. Prior to that, he defeated Maurice Greene by decision after losing to Alexander Romanov by submission. Marcos is 8-5 inside the Octagon and alternated wins and losses from 2014 to this current two-fight winning streak.
With the addition of Ivanov vs. de Lima, UFC 274 is as follows:
- Glover Teixeira vs. Jiri Prochazka
- Charles Oliveira vs. Justin Gaethje
- Blagoy Ivanov vs. Marcos Rogerio de Lima
- Macy Chiasson vs. Norma Dumont
- Loopy Godinez vs. Ariane Carnelossi
Who do you think will win at UFC 274, Blagoy Ivanov or Marcos Rogerio de Lima?