“Malhadinho” has saved the day.
Top Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Heavyweight contender Jailton Almeida is stepping in on just three weeks’ notice to face Russia’s Rizvan Kuniev at UFC Vegas 113 on Sat., Feb. 7, 2026, inside the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. Kuniev was originally scheduled to fight Ryan Spann before the bout fell through.
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Brazilian reporter Leo Guimarães was first to report the news, also revealing that Almeida recently re-signed with the UFC.
Almeida (22-4) will put his shiny No. 6 ranking on the line in a risky short-notice matchup. The Brazilian powerhouse saw his two-fight win streak snapped in his last outing, dropping a controversial split decision to Alexander Volkov at UFC 321. Prior to that setback, “Malhadinho” rattled off back-to-back stoppage wins over Serghei Spivac (watch highlights) and Alexander Romanov.
Now 34 years old, Almeida holds an impressive 8-2 record inside the Octagon, with his only UFC losses coming against elite competition in Curtis Blaydes and Volkov.
Kuniev (12-3-1) earned his UFC contract on Season 8 of Contender Series after knocking out Hugo Cunha, but his promotional debut was delayed nearly nine months due to multiple cancellations. He finally made his Octagon debut against Blaydes at UFC Baku, losing a highly competitive split decision that snapped an 11-fight unbeaten streak.
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That run included one blemish — a No Contest stemming from a failed drug test during his stint with the Professional Fighters League (PFL).
Here is what UFC Vegas 112 looks like:
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Mario Bautista vs. Vinicius Oliveira
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Amir Albazi vs. Kyoji Horiguchi
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Jailton Almeida vs. Rizvan Kuniev
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Marc-Andre Barriault vs. Michal Oleksiejczuk
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Farid Basharat vs. Jean Matsumoto
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Uran Satybaldiev vs. Julius Walker
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Wang Cong vs. Eduarda Moura
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Priscila Cachoeira vs. Klaudia Sygula
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Daniil Donchenko vs. Alex Morono
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Bruna Brasil vs. Ketlen Souza
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Muin Gafurov vs. Jakub Wiklacz
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Said Nurmagomedov vs. Javid Basharat
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Nikolay Veretennikov vs. Jose Henrique Souza
To checkout UFC’s upcoming schedule of events click here.
