UFC ace Paul Craig faces arguably the biggest fight of his career when he tackles former contender Alexander Gustafsson on September 4.
It’s likely to be a ‘striker v grappler’ battle in London, with Airdrie star Craig going into it on the back of a three-fight winning streak.
The Brazilian Jiu Jitsu ace most recently beat Jamahal Hill at UGC 263 via technical knock-out, and made short work of it, dislocating his opponent’s arm with an armbar and pocketing $50,000 for his efforts.
Craig knew victory in Arizona would go towards unlocking the top 10 for him, and that can continue with victory over Gustafsson, who at light-heavyweight fought for the UFC title three times.
The 34-year-old Swede, nicknamed ‘The Mauler’ is making his return to the Octagon against Craig in the Fight Night event, and is on a three-fight losing skid against Fabricio Werdum, Anthony Smith and Jon Jones.
His last official victory in the Octagon came against Glover Teixeira in May 2017.
It’s a massive Fight Night for both men, with Craig looking to further cement his path to becoming a contender, while victory for Gustafsson would get him back in the top-15 and back on track.
Craig, with 15 wins and a draw in 20 bouts, is currently the No.12-ranked light heavyweight.
That brutal win over Hill, almost breaking his arm early in the fight and forcing the referee to intervene when his opponent refused to tap out, despite his obvious injury, is lauded by many in the sport as one of the best wins of 2021.
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