The UFC doesn’t often give second chances, but Kyle Daukaus is getting one.
The current CFFC middleweight champion and a seven-fight UFC alum, Daukaus (15-4 MMA, 2-4 UFC) has replaced Marco Tulio and will battle Michel Pereira (31-13 MMA, 9-4 UFC). The three-round middleweight bout will take place Aug. 23 at UFC Fight Night 257 from Mercedes-Benz Arena in Shanghai.
Two people with knowledge of the matchup recently confirmed the booking to MMA Junkie after an initial report from Ag. Fight. The people asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Daukaus, 32, departed the UFC in early 2023 after the promotion elected not to re-sign him following the conclusion of his agreement. All but two of Daukaus’ UFC opponents remain on the roster as he rejoins it. His two wins were against Jamie Pickett and Dustin Stoltzfus with his losses against Brendan Allen, Roman Dolidze, Eryk Anders, and Phil Hawes. He also had a no contest vs. Kevin Holland.
Following his departure, Daukaus returned to the regional scene, and more specifically CFFC. He went 4-0 for them with three finishes and a middleweight title clinch.
Pereira, 31, aims to snap a two-fight skid as he enters the bout off consecutive losses to Anthony Hernandez and Abus Magomedov. Prior to these bumps in the road, Pereira was on an eight-fight winning streak.
With the change, the UFC Fight Night 257 lineup includes:
- Johnny Walker vs. Mingyang Zhang
- Brian Ortega vs. Aljamain Sterling
- Waldo Cortes-Acosta vs. Sergei Pavlovich
- Kevin Borjas vs. Su Mudaerji
- Austin Hubbard vs. Zhu Rong
- Kyle Daukaus vs. Michel Pereira
- Diyar Nurgozhay vs. Uran Satybaldiev
- Charles Johnson vs. Lone’er Kavanagh
- Long Xiao vs. Su Young You
- Maheshate Hayisaer vs. Gauge Young
- Kiefer Crosbie vs. Taiyilake Nueraji
- Westin Wilson vs. Yi Zha
