A bout between two of the light heavyweight division’s most accomplished competitors, Saturday night’s main event promises to be a tight and intriguing affair. While Jamahal Hill prefers to grind down his opponents before unleashing one of his trademark significant strikes, Khalil Rountree Jr often attempts to land an early knockout blow.
Despite adopting contrasting fighting styles, both of these men have enjoyed a similar level of success since their respective UFC debuts, although Hill’s short spell as Light Heavyweight Champion arguably gives him the edge over his American compatriot.
Nevertheless, the bookies expect Rountree Jr to secure a narrow victory this weekend, pricing him at 5/8 to land his fourteenth career win.
The main card – which features the likes of Baku-born brawler Nazim Sadykhov, former Kyrgyzstan Muay Thai Champion Rafael Fiziev, and American veteran Curtis Blaydes – gets underway at 8.00pm (BST), after six preliminary contests initially take centre stage.
TNT Sports customers will be able to watch events at the Baku Crystal Hall unfold from 6.00pm on Saturday, with uninterrupted coverage of the main card and preliminary bouts available on the TNT Sports 1 channel.
UFC on ABC: Jamahal Hill v Khalil Rountree Jr – key information
Date: Saturday 21st June
Start time: Preliminaries – 6.00pm, Main Card – 8.00pm
Venue: Baku Crystal Hall, Baku
Referee: TBC
TV Channels: TNT Sports 1 (coverage starts at 6.00pm)
Main Event Odds: Jamahal Hill – 13/10, Khalil Rountree Jr – 5/8
Odds provided by bet365
The odds, correct at the time of publication, are subject to change.
Fight Card – UFC on ABC: Jamahal Hill v Khalil Rountree Jr
We’ve provided a brief preview of each of the six main card match-ups below:
Jamahal Hill v Khalil Rountree Jr – Light Heavyweight bout
Since breaking the UFC record for most distant strikes landed during his championship-winning triumph over Glover Teixeira in Rio de Janeiro, Jamahal Hill has suffered back-to-back defeats. Having vacated his light heavyweight title after rupturing an Achilles tendon competing in a UFC-sponsored basketball match, the Chicagoan failed to recapture his belt at UFC 300 thanks to a series of devastating punches from Alex Pereira. Hill would then lose in a similar fashion to Kyokushin specialist Jiří Procházka at the start of this year, hitting the canvas just over three minutes into the third round.
Although he boasts a superior recent record, Khalil Rountree also lost on his last appearance in the Octagon, with Brazilian black belter Alex Pereira once again inflicting the pain. Before that bruising encounter in Salt Lake City last October, the Californian registered five consecutive victories over a two-year window. He received the Performance of the Night award on three occasions during this impressive sequence, delivering TKOs to Karl Roberson, Chris Daukaus, and Anthony Smith.
Only two men in the history of the UFC’s light heavyweight division have knocked out more opponents than the War Horse; can he execute a finishing strike for the eighth time in Baku?
Rafael Fiziev v Ignacio Bahamondes – Lightweight bout
Born in Kazakhstan but now representing Azerbaijan in the Octagon, Rafael Fiziev will relish the opportunity to fight in his adopted homeland. Although he was beaten by Russian ‘Sniper’ Magomed Mustafaev on his UFC debut, the talented 32-year-old shot up the rankings after recording six straight wins. However, his momentum has slowed considerably of late following three successive losses, two of which coming in Fight of the Night contests with former UFC BMF and Interim Lightweight Champion Justin Gaethje.
In stark contrast, Ignacio Bahamondes has emerged victorious in his last three contests, using different methods to overwhelm his adversary on each occasion. A brutal head kick to American ace Christos Giagos at UFC Fight Night 240 preceded a TKO triumph over Manuel Torres, before the Chilean’s lethal triangle choke hold forced Jalin ‘The Tarantula’ Turner to tap out in what turned out to be the final bout of his career.
Despite his recent woes, the bookmakers have installed Fiziev as the marginal favourite ahead of Saturday’s contest.
Curtis Blaydes v Rizvan Kuniev – Heavyweight bout
Now approaching the twilight stage of his highly decorated career, two of Curtis Blaydes' five UFC defeats have come in his last three bouts. After being dispatched by Sergei Pavlovich midway through the first round of their meeting at UFC Vegas 71, Blaydes was knocked out within one minute of his clash with Tom Aspinall in Manchester. Ironically, the pair battled for just 15 seconds in their only previous encounter on English soil, with Aspinall sustaining an early knee injury at London’s 02 Arena.
Rizvan Kuniev finally makes his maiden UFC appearance, having had all three of his scheduled fights – two of which earmarked Blaydes as his opponent – cancelled in the last seven months. The highly rated Russian has won 13 of his 17 scraps, and is yet to lose by knockout or submission.
Although Kuniev is in far better form, the experienced American should have too much class for the plucky newcomer.
Tofiq Musayev v Myktybek Orolbai – Lightweight bout
Having last stepped into the Octagon over 18 months ago, Tofiq Musayev will have to quickly reacclimatise to keep pace with the dangerous Myktybek Orolbai. Nevertheless, the wily veteran defeated Koji Takeda at Rizin Landmark 7 last time out, as a major MMA event was staged in Azerbaijan for the very first time. Performing once again in front of a partisan home crowd, Musayev will be expecting a similar outcome on this occasion.
However, Orolbai will also be quietly optimistic heading into Saturday’s contest. The Kyrgyzstani came out on top in each of his first two UFC bouts, putting Uroš ‘The Doctor’ Medić into a neck crank hold at UFC Fight Night 232 before beating Elves Brener by unanimous decision in Rio de Janeiro. He was then unlucky not to preserve his unbeaten record following last October’s meeting with Mateusz Rębecki, as two judges out of three determined the Pole was the worthy winner.
Nazim Sadykhov v Nikolas Motta – Lightweight bout
Nazim Sadykhov has come a long way since losing to fellow rookie Juan Galarza in his first-ever MMA clash back in November 2018, triumphing in all ten of his subsequent bouts. The latest victory in this sequence came in February’s meeting with Ismael Bonfim at UFC Fight Night: Cannonier v Rodrigues, as the Azerbaijani’s assault pre-empted a doctor’s intervention at the end of the first round.
Although he’ll undoubtedly find it tough against the man they call the ‘Black Wolf,’ Nikolas Motta has an outside chance of scoring his fourth UFC victory. The Brazilian edged Maheshate Hayisaer at Macau’s Galaxy Arena in his most recent outing, receiving the judges’ approval following three keenly contested rounds.
Muhammad Naimov v Bogdan Grad – Featherweight bout
Having avoided being knocked out in each of his 15 MMA bouts, Muhammad Naimov will be confident he can preserve this record on Saturday evening. However, the Tajiki Taekwondo expert tapped out for the first time in his career at UFC on ABC 6, falling victim to Felipe Lima’s rear-naked choke hold in the Saudi capital.
Nevertheless, Naimov was successful on his return to Riyadh in February, beating Kaan Ofli via unanimous decision. Bogdan Grad was also a winner at the UFC’s third event of the calendar year, landing a barrage of punches and elbows from the mount position to dispatch Lucas Alexander late on in the second round.
Full Fight Card – UFC on ABC: Jamahal Hill v Khalil Rountree Jr
Confirmation of Saturday’s bouts below:
Main Card
Jamahal Hill (USA) v Khalil Rountree Jr (USA)
Rafael Fiziev (Azerbaijan) v Ignacio Bahamondes (Chile)
Curtis Blaydes (USA) v Rizvan Kuniev (Russia)
Tofiq Musayev (Azerbaijan) v Myktybek Orolbai (Kyrgyzstan)
Nazim Sadykhov (Azerbaijan) v Nikolas Motta (Brazil)
Muhammad Naimov (Tajikistan) v Bogdan Grad (Austria)
Preliminary Card
Seok Hyeon Ko (South Korea) v Oban Elliott (Wales)
Ismail Naurdiev (Morocco) v Park Jun-Yong (South Korea)
Melissa Mullins (England) v Darya Zheleznyakova (Russia)
Irina Alekseeva (Russia) v Klaudia Syguła (Poland)
Tagir Ulanbekov (Russia) v Azat Maksum (Kazakhstan)
Hamdy Abdelwahab (Egypt) v Mohammed Usman (Nigeria)
Where to watch?
UFC fans in the United Kingdom can access all of the promotion’s marquee events by signing up for TNT Sports. Coverage of Saturday’s fight card commences at 6.00pm on TNT Sports 1, as the preliminaries get underway in Baku. Jamahal Hill and Khalil Rountree Jr will emerge for their headline bout several hours later, with the main card scheduled for 8.00pm onwards.
The event will also be available to Discovery+ customers, who can catch the action on TV or via the network’s dedicated app.