Erik Koch vs. Daron Cruickshank joins UFC Fight Night 40 in Cincinnati
A lightweight bout between Erik Koch (14-3 MMA, 3-2 UFC) and Daron Cruickshank (14-4 MMA, 4-2 UFC) is the latest addition to May’s UFC Fight Night 40 event in Cincinnati.
UFC officials today announced the fight.
The event takes place May 10 at Cincinnati’s U.S. Bank Arena. The main card is expected to air on FOX Sports 1 following prelims on UFC Fight Pass. A headliner hasn’t been announced.
Koch vs. Cruickshank will likely be part of the main card.
After a two-fight skid at featherweight, where trainer Duke Roufus said the fighter made drastic weight cuts that affected him two weeks out from a fight, Koch recently moved up to lightweight and scored a first-round TKO win over Rafaello Oliveira at UFC 170. Before the skid, the 25-year-old Roufusport fighter and WEC vet had earned four straight wins, which included “Knockout of the Night†performances over Francisco Rivera and Raphael Assuncao.
Cruickshank, meanwhile, recently halted a 1-2 skid that an impressive second-round TKO victory over Mike Rio at UFC on FOX 10. The 28-year-old, who found his way to the UFC after competing on “The Ultimate Fighter 15,†also owns UFC victories over the likes of Yves Edwards, Henry Martinez and Chris Tickle.
The latest UFC Fight Night 40 card includes:
Daron Cruickshank vs. Erik Koch
Johnny Eduardo vs. Eddie Wineland
Justin Salas vs. Ben Wall
Ed Herman vs. Rafael Natal
Soa Palelei vs. Ruan Potts
Manny Gamburyan vs. Nik Lentz
Kyoji Horiguchi vs. Darrell Montague
Chris Cariaso vs. Louis Smolka
Yan Cabral vs. Alexander Yakovlev
