The Octagon returns to the Apex on Saturday night where two fighters who have called the same gym home will collide.
UFC Vegas 108 is set to take place on August 2 with a card that may not have the same level of star power that fans have witnessed in recent weeks.
The main event was changed on late notice with Tatsuro Taira now facing Hyun Sung Park in the flyweight headliner.
In the co-main event, two lightweights that have a good track record for putting on entertaining fights will meet inside the Octagon for the first time.
Having credited Dustin Poirier for his back-to-back submission wins, Chris Duncan will look to extend his winning streak to three in his sixth UFC outing.
Chris Duncan recalls how Mateusz Rebecki offered to fight him on short notice while they were teammates
Chris Duncan faces Mateusz Rebecki on August 2 but the road to UFC Vegas 108 wasn’t the first time that this matchup was a potential option.
After Duncan stunned Dana White with his Contender Series win, the Scottish fighter’s debut opponent withdrew, leaving the UFC to try and find him a replacement.
‘The Problem’ recently spoke during media day about how Rebecki had offered to step in despite the fact that they were training partners at American Top Team at the time.
Duncan thanked his gym for being so professional ahead of this fight and keeping both men’s preparations separate, but he’s now happy to have the chance to answer Rebecki’s call out.
“When he heard my opponent had pulled out, he said, ‘I’ll fight you’. We’d already been in the gym together so I was a little bit like, ‘We’re supposed to be teammates’. I told him on Twitter, I just said, ‘Get in line. Everybody’s wanting a piece so just get in line’.
“So when this fight came about later down the line, Sean Shelby sent his name over. I’m a guy who likes to give and his wish was to fight me so I gave him that wish. I think it’s a bad move on him but I was happy to do it… It is what it is and like I say, I’m going to make his wish come true.”
Chris Duncan jokes that he didn’t have to think twice about accepting this matchup given his current contract
Chris Duncan jokingly remarked during his media day interviews that with his current contract, he’d fight his own family when he was asked whether there was any second thought about accepting this matchup.
From the UFC’s perspective, it seems like a no-brainer to put these two lightweights together despite their allegiance to American Top Team.
Both Duncan and Mateusz Rebecki have recently earned performance bonuses with this clash of styles appearing likely to provide a highlight.
- Chris Duncan submitted Bolaki Oki in Paris last September to win a performance of the night bonus
- Mateusz Rebecki beat Myktybek Orolbai via split decision at UFC 308 to win a fight of the night bonus
‘The Problem’ will be hoping that following Saturday night, his opponent will be regretting ever putting his name in the mix to step in and face him.