Jailton Almeida vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik headlines UFC Charlotte
A heavyweight bout between Jailton Almeida and Jairzinho Rozenstruik will headline the upcoming UFC Charlotte card.
The original main event for this card was Johnny Walker vs. Anthony Smith in a battle of light heavyweight contenders, but with just about a month to go until the event, the world’s leading MMA promotion has made a switcheroo. Instead of Walker vs. Smith being the five-round main event, Almeida vs. Rozensturik now heads the main event treatment.
UFC Charlotte is set to take place on May 13 at Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. The UFC confirmed the new main event for the upcoming event via its Twitter.
𝑯𝑬𝑨𝑽𝒀𝑾𝑬𝑰𝑮𝑯𝑻𝑺 take center stage in Charlotte! 💥@JairRozenstruik and @Malhadinho_UFC will headline May 13th!
[ #UFCCharlotte | Sat. May 13 | @SpectrumCenter ] pic.twitter.com/pLgqkI9zVM
— UFC (@ufc) April 4, 2023
Rozenstruik is actually ranked higher than Almeida at No. 9 in the UFC heavyweight division, but his opponent isn’t ranked much further behind at No. 12. In other words, this is an important fight between two top-15 ranked fighters in the UFC’s heaviest weight division. For Rozenstruik, it’s an opportunity to prove he still deserves to be ranked in the top 10, while for Almeida, it’s his chance to move one step closer to the division’s elite.
Rozenstruik has been a mainstay of the UFC heavyweight division for several years now, beating opponents such as Alistair Overeem, Chris Daukaus, and Augusto Sakai. He has huge power in his hands and feet and he’s proven that with seven brutal UFC knockouts.
As for Almeida, he is still a relative newcomer to the UFC, having joined the promotion two years ago. He has made a quick splash since then, beating the likes of Shamil Abdurakhimov and Parker Porter by stoppage. There is every reason to believe that Rozenstruik has all of the tools to become an elite heavyweight, and a win over Rozenstruik will get him one step closer to the top of the weight class.
Who do you think wins this heavyweight main event between Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Jailton Almeida?
