The UFC’s heavyweight signing spree continues.
LFA heavyweight champion Denzel Freeman is the most recent fighter to make the jump to the UFC with his debut set for the promotion’s UFC Fight Night 265 card Nov. 22 in Qatar, his manager Oren Hodak, of KO Reps announced Thursday.
Freeman (6-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) is expected to face Marek Buljo (6-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC).
Freeman, 33, is a logistics officer for the U.S. Marine Corps in addition to being a fighter. At one point, he was also a development talent for WWE-owned NXT.
As a pro fighter, Freeman has found much success in a short time. He won his first three fights for Titan FC before he signed onto PFL Challenger Series where he won by 27-second knockout.
In a showcase bout for the main-brand PFL in 2023, Freeman tallied his first (and only) pro loss, a split decision defeat to Isaiah Pinson that was highly controversial.
Since then, Freeman won back-to-back fights by second-round stoppages. First he submitted current UFC heavyweight Steven Asplund by rear naked choke, then he ground-and-pounded his way to a LFA title against Hugo Cunha.
With the change, the UFC Fight Night 265 lineup includes:
- Asu Almabayev vs. Alex Perez
- Shamil Gaziev vs. Serghei Spivac
- Raffael Cerqueira vs. AbdulRakhman Yakhyaev
- Felipe Lima vs. Daniel Marcos
- Marek Bujlo vs. Denzel Freeman
