Kelvin Gastelum Returns for Second Noche UFC Fight
· Yahoo Sports
Last year, Kelvin Gastelum fought during Noche UFC and won a unanimous decision against Dustin Stoltzfus. Also, this year, the former TUF winner will fight on the Noche card. He takes on Dutch sensation Yousri Belgaroui in the middleweight division.
The UFC announced the fight during the UFC Oklahoma City broadcast. The event takes place on September 12 at the Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona. The fight is scheduled for three five-minute rounds.
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Very Talented Hall Of Famer
The 34-year-old Gastelum has been a mainstay for the UFC for years. In 2013, Gastelum was part of the cast of the 17th season of The Ultimate Fighter. After winning four fights, he reached the finale against Uriah Hall. Gastelum won the fight via split decision, claiming the Ultimate Fighter trophy. Gastelum was one of the biggest talents in the UFC welterweight division, but struggled with his weight. In his sixth fight for the company, he lost for the first time via split decision against Tyron Woodley. Gastelum came in nine pounds over the welterweight limit and decided to move to middleweight. After a win over Nate Marquardt, Gastelum gave it one more shot at welterweight.
Unfortunately, after two fights, he had to go back to middleweight again because of ongoing issues with making weight. Gastelum found his spot in the division, and after wins over Michael Bisping and Jacaré Souza, he got a shot at the interim middleweight title against Israel Adesanya. The fight was recently inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame as one of the best fights ever. Gastelum lost the fight via unanimous decision. From that moment on, the former TUF winner had trouble winning back-to-back fights. He went down to welterweight again in 2023 but came back a year later at middleweight. Gastelum won two of his last four fights. In his most recent fight, he came up short against Vicente Luque. Gastelum now takes on Yousri Belgaroui.
One Of The Dark Horses In The Middleweight Division
Yousri Belgaroui is a 34-year-old fighter out of Amsterdam, The Netherlands. For years, Belgaroui fought at the highest level in kickboxing. In 2021, he made the transition to mixed martial arts. After going 5-2 in his first two years, he got the call from the UFC to fight on the Contender Series. Belgaroui took on Marco Tulio in Las Vegas. Weeks before the fight, Belgaroui was sidelined with Lyme disease and Ehrlichiosis contracted from a tick bite. Because of that, he barely trained before the fight and was on antibiotics. One week before the fight, he got off the antibiotics and fought. Tulio won the fight, and Belgaroui went back to the regional scene in the Netherlands.
After winning the LFL title six months later, he got a chance at redemption a year after his loss against Tulio on the Contender Series. Belgaroui fought Taiga Iwasaki and won via TKO in the third round. UFC president Dana White was far from impressed by Belgaroui’s showing and was very critical of him. White said he didn’t have any intention to sign him after the fight. Surprisingly, the UFC came back to Belgaroui and offered him a fight last year against Azamat Bekoev. Belgaroui showed massive improvements in his grappling and took out Bekoev in the third round via TKO. Earlier this year, Belgaroui took on undefeated prospect Mansur Abdul-Malik. Again being the underdog, Belgaroui fought a great fight and knocked out Abdul-Malik in the third round. Now he takes on Kelvin Gastelum, a big step up in competition.
Noche UFC – September 12 (Desert Diamond Arena)
- Manon Fiorot vs. Alexa Grasso
- Waldo Cortes Acosta vs. Curtis Blaydes
- Brandon Moreno vs. Joseph Morales
- Tim Elliott vs. Edgar Chairez
- Kelvin Gastelum vs. Yousri Belgaroui
- JJ Aldrich vs. Regina Tarin
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