Joaquin Buckley returns in October at UFC Edmonton
Joaquin Buckley is set for his second octagon assignment of the year, as he takes on streaking Canadian prospect Mike Malott at UFC Edmonton.
Joaquin Buckley will look to close out his 2026 campaign with a win, as the UFC just announced that he's scheduled to face Mike Malott at welterweight in the main event of UFC Edmonton. The bout takes place on Oct. 17 and marks one of the most important ones in Malott's career. For Buckley, by contrast, it is a crack at redemption.
Joaquin Buckley vs. Mike Malott is a high stakes clash
Joaquin Buckley heads into UFC Edmonton on a two-fight losing streak. After previously stringing together six consecutive wins, including a third-round TKO over Colby Covington at UFC on ESPN 63, Buckley suffered crushing back-to-back losses. All-time welterweight great Kamaru Usman outmuscled him for five rounds en route to a unanimous decision win at UFC on ESPN 69. Then, at UFC 328, Buckley was handed his second straight loss by Sean Brady, who outwrestled him across three rounds for a dominant unanimous decision win.
MIKEY BACK IN THE MAIN š¤šØš¦ @Michael_Malott
and @NewMansa94 collide in our #UFCEdmonton main event!
Register your interest at https://t.co/x7BqfyXXTj ā šļø pic.twitter.com/sAjfuwVJIi
He is in desperate need of a win, having not tasted victory since 2024. More importantly, his top 10 ranking is at stake. The UFC Meta rankings have him as the #9 welterweight in the world, while the UFC media panel rankings have him at #10. A loss would almost certainly knock him out of the top 10 and reward the rising Mike Malott, who is in the top 15 at #11 and #12 respectively on the aforementioned rankings. Malott has bounced back well since his 2024 loss to Neil Magny, who TKO'd him in round three in a stunning comeback at UFC 297. He is on a four-fight win streak, having sent ex-welterweight title challenger Gilbert Burns into retirement with a third-round TKO at UFC Fight Night 273.
For Buckley, the matchup with Malott is his chance to get back inside the win column and prove that he still deserves to be regarded as one of the world's best welterweights. However, for Malott, Buckley represents his path into the upper echelon of the division, and the beginning of a potential title challenging campaign. At 34 years old, the clock is already ticking for him, and it is do or die for the Canadian star.
