Volkanovski to face previously undefeated Evloev at Abu Dhabi event on October 24

The UFC is heading to Abu Dhabi on Saturday, October 24, for a card headlined by two world title fights. Alexander Volkanovski will face the previously undefeated Movsar Evloev, while Petr Yan and Merab Dvalishvili will meet for the third time in a bantamweight championship trilogy. The event takes place at Etihad Arena in the United Arab Emirates.

Evloev arrives with a perfect 20-0 record and sits at number one in the featherweight rankings. The 32-year-old Russian, who trains at American Top Team, is a grinder built on wrestling: he averages 4.78 takedowns per 15 minutes and lands 3.91 significant strikes a minute at 47 percent accuracy. His most recent recorded fight came on March 21, 2026, a majority decision win over Lerone Murphy that went the full five rounds.

Yan holds the bantamweight title and is 20-5. The 33-year-old Russian is the more productive striker of the two bantamweights, landing 5.12 significant strikes per minute at 54 percent accuracy. He won the title in his most recent recorded fight, a unanimous decision over Dvalishvili at UFC 323 on December 6, 2025.

Dvalishvili, 35, is 21-5 and ranked number one at 135 pounds, with a number two pound-for-pound ranking. The Georgian standout, who trains with the Serra-Longo Fight Team, averages 6.4 takedowns per 15 minutes, the highest rate among the fighters in this story.

Why it matters

• The trilogy is level at one win apiece. Dvalishvili took a unanimous decision on March 11, 2023, and Yan answered with a unanimous decision at UFC 323. Both fights went the full five rounds.
• The numbers frame a clear contrast in the bantamweight rivalry: Dvalishvili's 6.4 takedowns per 15 minutes against Yan's 5.12 strikes landed per minute.
• Evloev's wrestling output of 4.78 takedowns per 15 minutes makes his first title-level test a stylistic question for the featherweight division.

Two championships on one card, with an undefeated challenger and a rivalry decider, give the Abu Dhabi event significant divisional weight.