The full card for UFC 319: Dricus du Plessis vs. Khamzat Chimaev has been announced, and a number of notable names have been added to the lineup.
The UFC has a busy summer of fights ahead, with a number of big-name battles set for the upcoming pay-per-views.
After Charles Oliveira faces Ilia Topuria at UFC 317 for the lightweight title and Dustin Poirier bids farewell to MMA at UFC 318, it will be the turn of the middleweights.
Du Plessis vs. Chimaev headlines UFC 319, as the South African makes his third defense of the 185-pound title. With the event in Chicago on August 16 fast approaching, plenty of other prominent names have now been announced for the card.
Jessica Andrade and Edson Barboza among those added to UFC 319
The undercard for the August PPV has taken shape days on from news that Jared Cannonier will fight Michael Page in the UFC 319 co-headliner.
Joining them in setting the stage for the championship main event will be a former champion in Jessica Andrade. She’s traded fights at flyweight and strawweight since her reign as 115-pound queen ended, and her next step comes in the lighter division opposite Loopy Godinez.
Also announced for the card is the return of knockout artist Edson Barboza. Following a featherweight loss to Lerone Murphy in 2024, the Brazilian veteran will pursue his fourth straight post-fight bonus up at lightweight against Drakkar Klose.
The UFC’s recent release also confirmed fights featuring ex-flyweight title challenger Kai Asakura, grappling specialist Chase Hooper, TUF winner Bryan Battle, and fan favorite King Green.
See below for the current UFC 319 lineup on August 16:
- Dricus du Plessis (C) vs. Khamzat Chimaev (UFC middleweight championship)
- Jared Cannonier vs. Michael Page (middleweight)
- Tim Elliott vs. Kai Asakura (flyweight)
- Karine Silva vs. JJ Aldrich (women’s flyweight)
- Alexander Hernandez vs. Chase Hooper (lightweight)
- Bryan Battle vs. Nursulton Ruziboev (middleweight)
- Jessica Andrade vs. Loopy Godinez (women’s strawweight)
- Gerald Meerschaert vs. Michal Oleksiejczuk (middleweight)
- King Green vs. Carlos Diego Ferreira (lightweight)
- Edson Barboza vs. Drakkar Klose (lightweight)
UFC 319 main event loses its backup fighter
As well as additions, UFC 319 also recently had a fighter removed from the equation.
Nassourdine Imavov was previously announced as the official backup for the UFC 319 main event on August 16. But just days after Du Plessis claimed he wouldn’t fight Imavov if Chimaev withdraws, the Frenchman says the backup role is no more.
“No backup anymore. Conditions changed,” Imavov wrote on X.
During the same post, Imavov called out Caio Borralho, reigniting their back-and-forth ahead of a potential clash between two highly regarded, surging contenders.
“You wanted to talk son, I’m here, I’m gonna break you @BorralhoCaio”
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The absence of a backup adds more pressure on Chimaev to make it to the cage on fight day, especially given the absence of a second title fight in the co-headliner.