Dana White announces official main card lineup for UFC 291 and two big prelim fights

Dana White has announced a stacked UFC 291 card headlined by Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje.

‘The Diamond’ and ‘The Highlight’ have been in talks to fight for a while now. Following Gaethje’s unanimous decision victory over Rafael Fiziev in March, he called for a REMATCH with Poirier. Their first bout back in April 2018 was an instant classic, with the Louisiana native earning the win by fourth-round stoppage.

Five years after their first bout, they will now have a rematch in July. Earlier today, Dana White announced the full UFC 291 lineup in a live stream. There, he revealed that Poirier and Gaethje will headline the Utah-based card in a five-round battle for the BMF ceremonial title. JORGE MASVIDAL famously held the title until his retirement following a loss to Gilbert Burns in April.

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The co-main event of UFC 291 also promises to be a firefight. Former middleweight champion Alex Pereira is heading up to light-heavyweight to face former titleholder Jan Blachowicz. ‘Poatan’ announced his plans to move up in weight following a loss to Israel Adesanya last month.

Next up on the main card is a middleweight clash between Paulo Costa and Ikram Aliskerov. ‘The Eraser’ is coming off a decision win over Luke Rockhold in August. Meanwhile, Aliskerov scored a first-round knockout win over Phil Hawes in his promotional debut earlier this month.

Lastly, rounding out the UFC 291 main card is a couple of high-profile veterans. At lightweight, TONY FERGUSON will face Bobby Green in his return. Meanwhile, welterweight contenders Michael Chiesa and Kevin Holland will clash in the main card opening bout.

Furthermore, there are also several notable fighters competing on the undercard of UFC 291. Slated for the prelims is a welterweight clash between Stephen Thompson and Michel Pereira, as well as a heavyweight battle between Derrick Lewis and Marcos Rogerio De Lima.

What do you make of these fight announcements? Are you excited for UFC 291? Sound off in the comment section below PENN Nation!