Banger Fights Reportedly Set as First Two Matchups for UFC Qatar Event

The UFC’s second-ever event in Qatar has reportedly already added a pair of fights that are sure to excite hardcore MMA fans.

The UFC added anoth major destination to its list of visited countries last November, as Doha, Qatar hosted a UFC Fight Night for the first time and saw top-ranked lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan submit Dan Hooker in the night’s main event,

Last week, the UFC revealed that UFC Qatar will apparently become an annual event, as the promotion is set to return to Doha once again on November 21.

Kyoji Horiguchi vs. Asu Almabayev Reportedly Set for UFC Qatar

Following news of this year’s UFC Qatar event, Léo Guimaraes reported that the card will feature a huge flyweight clash between former title challenger Kyoji Horiguchi and Asu Almabayev.

A veteran of 42 professional MMA fights, Horiguchi challenged Demetrious Johnson for the UFC
flyweight belt in 2015 and rebounded from a stunning last-second submission with three-straight wins before he returned to Japan to join RIZIN in 2017.

Kyoji Horiguchi (red gloves) fights Ali Bagautinov (blue gloves) during UFC Fight Night at SSE Arena. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

A lengthy run with RIZIN saw Horiguchi claim several titles between the top Japanese promotion and Bellator, and last year the 35-year-old returned to the UFC and scored an upset-victory over Tagir Ulanbekov.

Kyoji Horiguchi celebrates after his win over Darrion Caldwell (not pictured) during Bellator 222 at Madison Square Garden. | USA TODAY Sports

“Karate Kid” followed that up with a unanimous decision over Amir Albazi before rematching his former RIZIN opponent Manel Kape, who stopped Horiguchi with strikes in the third round of their UFC Fight Night main event.

Asu Almabayev (blue gloves) fights CJ Vergara (red gloves) during UFC 299 at Kaseya Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Top-ranked flyweight contender Almabayev kicked off his own UFC career with four-straight wins before he was also stopped by Kape in March of last year, but since then the 32-year-old has won three-straight fights and most recently defeated Charles Johnson via Suloev Stretch in June.

UFC Qatar Also Adds Aleksandre Topuria vs. Santiago Luna

The matchup between Horiguchi and Almabayev is a significant one for the flyweight division, and this week MMA Latinoamérica also reported that UFC Qatar will feature a bantamweight bout between Aleksandre Topuria and Santiago Luna.

The brother of former featherweight and lightweight UFC titleholder Ilia Topuria, Aleksandre joined the promotion last year and defeated Colby Thicknesse in his debut at UFC 312 before he closed out 2025 with another unanimous decision over Bekzat Almakhan.

Aleksandre Topuria after winning his UFC debut. | (Zuffa LLC)

Mexico’s Luna also kicked off his own UFC career with a pair of victories, but a major step up in competition against Bryce Mitchell in June saw the 22-year-old suffer his first MMA loss when he was submitted with just 8 seconds left in the fight.

Santiago Luna (red gloves) reacts prior to the fight against Quang Le (blue gloves) during Noche UFC at Frost Bank Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The two reported matchups are a strong start to this year’s edition of UFC Qatar, and fans can presumably look forward to more fight announcements in the coming weeks given that the event is less than two months away.

UFC Qatar Fight Card

Kyoji Horiguchi vs. Asu Almabayev

Aleksandre Topuria vs. Santiago Luna

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