Kyle Nelson celebrates after his UFC fight against Blake Bilder, in Vancouver, on June 10, 2023.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press
Canadian featherweight Kyle (The Monster) Nelson has earned a high-profile matchup with Calvin (The Boston Finisher) Kattar, ranked ninth among UFC 145-pound contenders, The two will meet on a Sept. 7 UFC Fight Night card in Las Vegas.
Kattar (23-8-0) has headlined six UFC cards in his 13-fight run (7-6-0) in the promotion. But he has lost his last three outings and four of his last five, albeit against elite opposition.
The 36-year-old Kattar lost to former 145-pound champion Aljamain (Funk Master) Sterling last time out at UFC 300 in April. Before that a knee injury resulted in a TKO loss to England’s (Almighty) Arnold Allen last October and Kattar lost a split decision to Josh Emmett last June.
Kattar earned a unanimous decision over Giga (Ninja) Chikadze before that, a win that following a decision loss to former champion Max (Blessed) Holloway.
An exciting fighter, Kattar has won five fight-of-the-night bonuses from the UFC.
Nelson (16-5-1) is unbeaten in his last four fights (3-0-1) with wins over Bill (Senor Perfecto) Algeo, Fernando (The Brave) Padilla and Blake (El Animal) Bilder and a draw with (The Korean Superboy) Doo Ho Choi.
The 33-year-old Nelson had lost four of his previous five UFC bouts.
Nelson, a native of Huntsville, Ont., who also spends time training in Stoney Creek, Ont., called out American Nate (The Train) Landwehr after his last bout.
While Kattar represents a step up in class, Nelson has done it before.
Prior to facing the Canadian, Choi had won performance bonuses in his last five UFC outings, including fight-of-the-night recognition for the last three. And his December 2016 brawl in Toronto with American Cub Swanson, which the South Korean lost by decision, was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame’s `Fight Wing’ as a part of the class of 2022.
Nelson has fought both at lightweight (155 pounds) and featherweight (145 pounds). His UFC debut, a loss to Brazil’s Diego Ferreira at UFC 231 in December 2018 in Toronto, was contested at 155 pounds with Nelson taking it on three days’ notice.