UFC mainstay changes weight classes for UFC Qatar fight after brual knockout loss

Jack Hermansson is set to drop down to the welterweight division for a matchup with Myktybek Orolbai at UFC Qatar.

Following recent trips to Shanghai, China, Paris, France, and Perth, Australia, the UFC still has several international events on the schedule with a total of 10 cards left before the promotion’s deal with ESPN expires at the end of the year.

The UFC Fight Night event on November 22 will see the promotion travel to Qatar for the first time, and both Hermansson and Orolbai have confirmed that they’re set to meet on the card following an initial report from @realkevink.

Jack Hermansson Drops To Welterweight After Knockout Loss

Formerly ranked in the UFC’s middleweight Top 15, Hermansson joined the UFC in 2016 and went on to defeat Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza in a UFC Fight Night main event in 2019 to cap off a four-fight win streak.

Hermansson was also given the headlining slot in his next outing against Jared Cannonier but was stopped in the second round before he rebounded with a first-round submission of Kelvin Gastelum in 2020. Those two fights set the trend for his recent career, as the 37-year-old has alternated wins and losses dating back to the Cannonier fight but has also shared the cage with the likes of former title challenger Marvin Vettori and former UFC Middleweight Champion Sean Strickland.

Jack Hermansson (red gloves) is checked on by medical staff after the fight against Gregory Rodrigues (blue gloves). — Jack Hermansson (red gloves) is checked on by medical staff after the fight against Gregory Rodrigues (blue gloves) during UFC 317 at T-Mobile Arena. | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

“The Joker” defeated Joe Pyfer in another UFC main event last February, but it appears a first-round knockout at the hands of Gregory Rodrigues at UFC 317 has encouraged Hermansson to try and test his fortunes at a lower weight class.

Myktybek Orolbai Returns To 170 lbs. At UFC Qatar

Following an impressive 11-1-1 regional run that he closed out with a back-to-back knockouts in the LFA, Orolbai joined the UFC as a welterweight in 2023 and submitted Uros Medic with a neck crank late in the second round.

The 27-year-old dropped down to lightweight for his next outing and took a unanimous decision over Elves Brener. Orolbai’s last two bouts have both been contested at catchweights, and after dropping a split decision in a “Fight of the Night”-winning outing against Mateusz Rebecki he returned to the win column in June with a first-round submission of Tofiq Musayev.

Elves Brener (red gloves) fights Myktybek Orolbai (blue gloves) during UFC 301 at Rio Arena. | Jason Silva-Imagn Images

It’s not often you see fighters elect to drop down a weight class when they’re as late into their careers as Hermansson is, but perhaps “The Joker” will be able to bounce back when he and Orolbai meet on a UFC Qatar card that currently looks like this.

UFC Qatar Fight Card

• Alex Perez vs. Asu Almabayev

• Serghei Spivac vs. Shamil Gaziev

• Jack Hermansson vs. Myktybek Orolbai

• Abdul Rakhman Yakhyaev vs. Raffael Cerqueira

• Felipe Lima vs. Daniel Marcos

• Marek Bujlo vs. Denzel Freeman

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