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Jan Blachowicz's journey back to title contention has taken another unexpected turn.
The former Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight titleholder was originally slated to rematch Bogdan Guskov at UFC Belgrade on Aug. 1 in Serbia. However, those plans changed when Guskov was offered the UFC Abu Dhabi main event spot against Magomed Ankalaev following Khalil Rountree's withdrawal.
As such, Blachowicz (29-11-2) will now square off against Navajo Stirling in the new co-main event in Belgrade and the Polish veteran is unfazed by the change.
After Guskov accepted the short-notice bout against Ankalaev, Blachowicz was paired with Stirling. The former champion insists little has changed in his preparation.
“I am doing this all my life,” Blachowicz said in a recent interview. “It’s a new opponent. I have a lot of respect for him, but it's just another fighter who I have to stop. I don’t think about this mess around because I don’t want to waste energy for that. Okay, it’s a new opponent; that’s it. We do small changes and we are here to win the fight against him, or a different opponent doesn’t matter.”
The upcoming matchup gives Blachowicz an opportunity to halt the longest winless stretch of his UFC tenure. He has gone four straight outings without a victory and is coming off a majority draw against Guskov this past December. His last win came all the way back in May 2022 when he defeated Aleksandar Rakic.
He’ll have his work cut out for him against the surging Stirling, who boasts a perfect 10-0 record.
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The former Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight titleholder was originally slated to rematch Bogdan Guskov at UFC Belgrade on Aug. 1 in Serbia. However, those plans changed when Guskov was offered the UFC Abu Dhabi main event spot against Magomed Ankalaev following Khalil Rountree's withdrawal.
As such, Blachowicz (29-11-2) will now square off against Navajo Stirling in the new co-main event in Belgrade and the Polish veteran is unfazed by the change.
Jan Blachowicz prepares for UFC Belgrade fight against Navajo Stirling
After Guskov accepted the short-notice bout against Ankalaev, Blachowicz was paired with Stirling. The former champion insists little has changed in his preparation.
“I am doing this all my life,” Blachowicz said in a recent interview. “It’s a new opponent. I have a lot of respect for him, but it's just another fighter who I have to stop. I don’t think about this mess around because I don’t want to waste energy for that. Okay, it’s a new opponent; that’s it. We do small changes and we are here to win the fight against him, or a different opponent doesn’t matter.”
The upcoming matchup gives Blachowicz an opportunity to halt the longest winless stretch of his UFC tenure. He has gone four straight outings without a victory and is coming off a majority draw against Guskov this past December. His last win came all the way back in May 2022 when he defeated Aleksandar Rakic.
He’ll have his work cut out for him against the surging Stirling, who boasts a perfect 10-0 record.
"I've been doing this my whole life."
Jan Błachowicz (@JanBlachowicz) doesn't let a late opponent change rattle him and believes experience will play a factor at #UFCBelgrade
Fight By Fight Previewhttps://t.co/dJBVdNYVzvpic.twitter.com/47BVGOsQu9— UFC News (@UFCNews) July 28, 2026
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