The UFC is ready to kick off its first event in Florida during the ESPN era. UFC on ESPN+ 8: Jacaré vs. Hermansson will be held on Saturday, April 27 at BB&T Center in Sunrise, Florida.
The show features Ronaldo “Jacaré” Souza (26-6-1) taking on Jack Hermansson (19-4) in the main event. Originally, a scheduled bout between Yoel Romero and Souza was set to take place at UFC Fort Lauderdale. But the ‘Soldier of God’ was then forced to pull out due to a case of pneumonia. The UFC then decided to book Souza vs. Hermansson, who took the fight on three weeks’ notice.
Souza last stepped inside the Octagon against Chris Weidman on November 3, 2018 at UFC 230. Souza won the fight via KO in the third round in a bout which also earned him ‘Fight of the Night.’
Hermansson, on the other hand, is currently riding a three-fight win-streak in the UFC. His latest victory came against David Branch via submission (guillotine choke) at UFC on ESPN 2: Barboza vs. Gaethje, a bout which took place only last month on March 30. Hermansson also earned ‘Performance of the Night’ honors. He’ll be looking to add a big name in Souza to his resume as he looks to continue climbing the UFC middleweight rankings (currently #10).
Souza, the No. 4-ranked middleweight, is 39 and has been on the verge of a title shot for what seems like his entire UFC career. He’s looking at one final push for a title shot. However, Hermansson will be looking for a huge upset. A win over Souza would surely throw his name up there with the UFC’s top middleweights.
Rest of Main Card
The co-main event will see Greg Hardy take on Dmitrii Smoliakov in a heavyweight bout. Hardy is looking for his first UFC win after being disqualified for an illegal blow last time out.
Mike Perry fights Alex Oliveira in what should be a welterweight banger. Glover Teixeira will look to stave off Father Time against light heavyweight prospect Ion Cutelaba. Always-dangerous top bantamweight John Lineker will attempt to prevent Cory Sandhagen from making a name off of him. Undefeated Roosevelt Roberts will look to keep his ‘0’ against Thomas Gifford in a lightweight bout that rounds out the main card.
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