UFC vet Takeya Mizugaki to face Pietro Menga at ACB 87
Absolute Championship Berkut's upcoming trip to the U.K. will feature a clash between two UFC vets - sort of.
The Russian outfit announced Wednesday that Takeya Mizugaki will face Pietro Menga in a bantamweight bout at ACB 87 on May 19 at Motorpoint Arena in Nottingham.
Mizugaki got his walking papers from the UFC after suffering back-to-back first-round knockouts courtesy of Cody Garbrandt and Eddie Wineland in 2016 - which left him with a promotional slate of 8-6 - only to see his skid extended to four fights under the ACB banner. The 34-year-old last dropped a unanimous decision to Murad Kalamov at ACB 80 in February and hasn't gotten his hand raised since besting George Roop on points in September 2015.
Menga didn't even have time for a cup of coffee in the UFC, as he was released when weight-cutting complications scrapped a late-notice flyweight bout with Tim Elliott at UFC on FOX 26 this past December. The 30-year-old aimed to work his way back onto the roster, but was dealt his first career loss in a unanimous decision to Raymison Bruno at a Celtic Gladiator event in February.
Another UFC alum in Robert Whiteford will vie for his third straight victory at Kane Mousah's expense in the featherweight main event, while fellow import Scott Askham meets Ibragim Chuzhigaev in the middleweight co-headliner following his stunning first-round knockout of Michal Materla at KSW 42.