Johnny Walker announces matchup against Ion Cutelaba at UFC 279

The violence potential for this newly released Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight rumble is almost off the charts.

On his YouTube channel, UFC light heavyweight Johnny Walker (18-7) announced on Thursday that he would be facing off against Ion Cutelaba (16-7-1, 1 NC) in an all-action 205-pound battle on Sept. 10. They will be colliding at UFC 279, which will be held at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on pay-per-view. Both of these strikers celebrate career knockout rates at 75% or higher.

Walker has hit a rough patch over the last few years, but not for lack of trying. The high-flying Brazilian put himself on the map with a trio of dynamic knockouts in 2018 and 2019, where he put Khalil Rountree, Justin Ledet and Misha Cirkunov away in the span of less than four months and only 2:50 of combined fight time. Since then, four defeats in his last five outings have quelled his momentum, and he will be bringing a two-bout skid into this pairing. His knockout over Ryan Spann in 2020 is bookended by these losses to Corey Anderson, Nikita Krylov, Thiago Santos and Jamahal Hill. Despite this, Walker’s finish rate sits at a stellar 94% as a pro.

“The Hulk” Cutelaba only trails Walker’s stoppage rate by a small margin, with 87% of his own victories coming inside the distance. Cutelaba has also struggled as of late, with a single victory across his last five appearances – although he only maintains three losses and a split draw to Dustin Jacoby, instead of four setbacks. The Moldovan put a hellacious beating on Devin Clark in which he knocked Clark’s teeth out in 2021, only to then get tapped by a Spann guillotine choke this May. At night’s end, one of these exciting light heavyweights will likely get back in the win column.

UFC 279 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Sept. 10, where a rare non-title fight will serve as the PPV headliner. At 170 pounds, top contender Khamzat Chimaev will face off against Nate Diaz, with the latter fighting the last bout of his UFC contract with seemingly no interest in re-signing. Other fights likely placed higher on the billing include a bantamweight scrap between Irene Aldana and Macy Chiasson, and a heavyweight clash pitting Shamil Abdurakhimov against Jailton Almeida.