‘The White Mike Tyson’ John Phillips, the current BAMMA middleweight champion, has signed on the dotted line with the UFC and will make his promotional debut against Marcos Rogerio De Lima in at UFC on Fox 23 in Denver on January 28th, according to a report from Combate.
The UFC has yet to make the fight booking official.
Phillips, who has gathered a professional record of 28-6 (with one no contest), trains under the stewardship of John Kavanagh at SBG Ireland and will become the latest SBG representative to step inside the octagon when he faces De Lima at the end of next month.
Phillips becomes the third Welsh fighter on the UFC roster, following Brett Johns and Jack Marshman.
The 31-year-old Welshman won the BAMMA 185-pound title in February of this year with a knockout of former champion Cheick Kone in a little over a minute, showcasing his incredible punching power in the process.
De Lima is 3-2 in his UFC career so far (14-4-1) overall and will be looking to rebound from a quick submission loss to Gadzhimurad Antigulov in November.
UFC on Fox 23 also features bouts between Valentina Shevchenko and Julianna Pena, while Donald Cerrone and Jorge Masvidal meet in a welterweight showdown. Hotly tipped heavyweight contender Francis Ngannou will also take on former champion Andrei Arlovski in the Mile High City.
