UFC books headliner between Ryan Spann and Nikita Krylov

May 9, 2020; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Ryan Spann (red gloves) before fighting Sam Alvey (blue gloves) during UFC 249 at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

Yesterday we learned that the UFC has finalized their headlining fight for a Fight Night in February. MMA Junkie was the first to report yesterday that “Superman” Ryan Spann (21-7) would be taking on Nikita Krylov (29-9) in a five-round main event.

The bout will headline a UFC Fight Night on February 25th. It’s a quick turnaround for Superman Spann who just fought at UFC 281 on the prelims. He took on former title challenger Dominick Reyes in Reyes’ return to the promotion after some time off.

Spann was a sizable underdog and came through in a big way knocking out Reyes quickly into the first round. It was a huge statement win for Spann who has now won back-to-back fights by first round finish.

UFC Headliner

Spann will face a stiff test in February when he takes on Nikita Krylov. Krylov is coming off a big win at UFC London when he defeated Volkan Oezdemir. In that fight, Krylov showed great resolve after Oezdemir hurt him early in the first round.

After a rocky start, Krylov got on track and went on to win a decision. It was Krylov’s second win in London for the year. Back in March, he took on former title challenger Alexander Gustafsson in the first London card and knocked him out in just over a minute.

This is a big fight for the UFC’s light heavyweight division. There’s a lot of fluidity in the division right now and there’s a need for new contenders. Whoever wins this bout should be squarely in the title picture.

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