Brian Kelleher will remain on the Sept. 5 card afterall.
The featherweight was originally set to fight Ricky Simon this Saturday, but Simon was pulled from the card due to his cornerman testing positive for COVID-19. Now, Kelleher will take on Kevin Natividad instead. The bout hasn’t been signed off just yet; however, both men have verbally agreed to the match-up.
Kelleher’s two-fight winning streak was snapped by Cody Stamann at UFC 250. Prior to the devastating loss, the featherweight beat Hunter Azure (via KO at UFC Fight Night: Smith vs. Teixeira) and Ode Osbourne (via submission at UFC 246). Kelleher’s professional record currently stands at 21 wins and 11 losses.
Natividad will be making his UFC debut here as the featherweight enters the contest with a strong five-fight winning streak that he gained during his time in Legacy Fighting Alliance and Iron Boy MMA. The 27-year-old also fought in World Fighting Federation and Combate Americas. Overall, his professional record stands at 9 wins and 1 loss.
Check out the latest UFC on ESPN+ 34 lineup:
Alistair Overeem vs. Augusto Sakai
Alonzo Menifield vs. Ovince Saint Preux
Sijara Eubanks vs. Karol Rosa
Zelim Imadaev vs. Michel Pereira
Brian Kelleher vs. Kevin Natividad
Thiago Moises vs. Jalin Turner
Viviane Araujo vs. Montana De La Rosa
Bartosz Fabinski vs. Andre Muniz
Marcos Rogerio de Lima vs. Alexander Romanov
Hunter Azure vs. Cole Smith