Beneil Dariush vs. Mateusz Gamrot set for UFC 280

A potential No. 1 contender match is the latest to join UFC 280.

Top-ranked lightweights Beneil Dariush and Mateusz Gamrot are set to collide in a pivotal bout on the Oct. 22 card. MMA Fighting confirmed the booking Wednesday following an initial report by ESPN.

Dariush is currently the No. 5 ranked lightweight in the world on MMA Fighting’s global rankings, while Gamrot is slotted at No. 8.

Dariush (21-4-1) has been out of action since his dominant May 2021 victory over former UFC interim champion Tony Ferguson. The 33-year-old veteran was expected to meet Islam Makhachev this past February in a No. 1 contender’s fight at UFC Vegas 49, but was ultimately forced to withdraw due to an injury. Dariush has won seven straight UFC bouts.

Gamrot (21-1, 1 NC), likewise, has been red hot since falling short in his 2020 octagon debut. The former KSW two-division champion has won his past four bouts and scored stoppages over Scott Holtzman, Jeremy Stephens, and Diego Ferreira. In his most recent appearance, the 31-year-old Gamrot captured a hard-fought unanimous decision over Arman Tsarukyan to punctuate his first UFC main event.

UFC 280 is set to take place at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The event is headlined by two title fights: Charles Oliveira vs. Makhachev for the vacant lightweight belt and Aljamain Sterling vs. T.J. Dillashaw for Sterling’s bantamweight championship.

MMA Fighting’s Damon Martin contributed to this report.