Ireland’s Ian Machado Garry will take on the former welterweight champion Belal Muhammad in the UFC’s debut event in Qatar on November 22, it has been confirmed. 

Machado Garry, the sixth-ranked fighter in the UFC’s welterweight fold, will come into the fight on the back of a win over Carlos Prates this past April while Muhammad will seek to re-establish his title credentials following a lobsided defeat to reigning champion Jack Della Maddalena in May.

The winner will be ideally positioned to fight the winner of November’s title bout between Della Maddalena and Islam Makhachev — though Muhammad has previously expressed his hesitation at potentially facing Machachev, with whom he has trained with previously. Makhachev relinquished the UFC lightweight title earlier this year ahead of a bid at the welterweight championship. Ilia Topuria, who himself vacated the company’s featherweight title, claimed the 155-pound world title in a bout with former champ Charles Oliveira.

The main event of the card to take place at the Ali Bin Hamad al-Attiyah Arena in Al Rayyan, Qatar will be a lightweight contest between Arman Tsarukyan and Dan Hooker. This hints that the UFC may be in the process of booking a bout between Paddy Pimblett and Justin Gaethje, who are also in contention to fight Topuria once a number one contender has been established.

Hooker has been absent from competition since August of last year owing to repeated hand injuries. He is currently in the midst of a three-fight win streak, holding wins over Mateusz Gamrot, Jalin Turner and Claudio Puelles. Tsarukyan is reportedly outside of the UFC’s good graces presently, after he withdrew at the 11th hour from a scheduled lightweight title bout earlier this year citing a back injury.