Siyar Bahadurzada (20-4-1) is finally Octagon-bound. The hyped Afghan middleweight is set to make his UFC debut at UFC 142 against rising Brazilian prospect Erick Silva (13-1, 1 NC) in January. Bahadurzada announced the matchup via Twitter on Monday.
"I'll be fighting Erick Silva at UFC 142!" he wrote. "Anxious to fight in Rio again!"
Bahadurzada, a Team Golden Glory representative, enters the Octagon on the heels of a six-fight win streak that includes a recent run to the championship of Ultimate Glory's welterweight tournament. The 27-year-old previously fought in Rio de Janeiro last year, successfully defending his Shooto light heavyweight belt by knocking out Carlos Alexandre Pereira in 94 seconds.
Across the cage, Silva hopes to continue his momentum after turning in a stunning UFC debut with a 40-second knockout of Luis Ramos at UFC 134. A judoka and Brazilian Jiu-Jistu blackbelt, "Indio" has yet to taste defeat inside the cage since a 2006 decision loss to Mario Neto.
UFC 142 takes place January 14th at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Featherweight champion Jose Aldo defends his title against rising challenger Chad Mendes in the night's featured bout.
UFC 142 fight card:
Featherweight Championship: Jose Aldo vs. Chad Mendes
Middleweight: Anthony Johnson vs. Vitor Belfort
Lightweight: Terry Etim vs. Edson Barboza
Lightweight: Thiago Tavares vs. Sam Stout
Welterweight: Siyar Bahadurzada vs. Erick Silva