Taylor Lapilus returns to the UFC against Khalid Taha this September
UFC Fight Night 209 is coming along quite nicely, as the UFC continues adding exciting bouts to the card.
UFC Fight Night 209 is to go down on September 3, 2022, live from the Accor Arena in Paris, France.
Headlining the event is a clash of heavyweight contenders in no. 1 ranked former interim champion Ciryl Gane and no. 3 ranked Tai Tuivasa, and it is to be co-headlined by another former champion, this one no. 1 ranked Robert Whittaker, who faces no. 3 ranked Marvin Vettori at 185 lbs.
Another exciting clash going down at UFC Paris is the return of Taylor Lapilus, who’s gone on an absolute tear since his departure with the UFC in 2016.
Coming over in 2015 with a record of 8-1, only losing to undefeated future WSOF & ACA champion Magomed Bibulatov, Lapilus would go 3-1 inside the octagon before his release, only losing to Erik Perez in that time.
Bibulatov was the only man to defeat Said Nurmagomedov for the longest time, and Perez was a prodigy that never truly lived up to the hype, there’s no shame in losing to either.
Not to mention, he wasn’t finished in either encounter.
Nonetheless, he was 11-2 at the time of his departure and he was ready to claim some championships.
Lapilus then went on to win the interim, and then undisputed GMC bantamweight championships, as well as the TKO & AFC bantamweight championships. He finished Nate Maness for the TKO title, and he was the only man to defeat him throughout 15 fights until Maness fought Umar Nurmagomedov last month in June.
Lapilus also defeated Josh Hill, as well as former UFC flyweight title challenger Wilson Reis in that time, going 8-1 over his last nine en route to rejoining the UFC’s roster.
Khalid Taha on the other hand has been on the UFC roster since 2018, coming over as a former FFC bantamweight champion with a record of 12-1, and he’s since gone 1-3 (1 NC).
Taha won the no contest via submission (arm-triangle choke), but the win was overturned as he failed the post-fight drug test, and the only man he beat in that span doesn’t fight for the UFC anymore.
However, Taha’s three promotional defeats come to good fighters in former Cage Warriors featherweight champion, the last man to defeat Paddy Pimblett, Nad Narimani, former RFA featherweight champion Raoni Barcelos, and former M-1 Global bantamweight champion Sergey Morozov, losing all three contests via unanimous decision.
Who do you see coming out on top in the bantamweight showcase at UFC Paris?
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