UFC 303 gets new heavyweight addition for McGregor vs. Chandler fight card

UFC 303’s fight card continues to expand as the promotion counts down to its long-awaited return of Conor McGregor.

A previously scheduled heavyweight matchup between former UFC champion Andrei Arlovski and Martin Buday has officially been shifted to June 29 for UFC 303, which takes place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Arlovski vs. Buday was originally booked for the promotion’s UFC Fight Night event on June 15 at the UFC APEX. Marcel Dorff first reported the news.

Arlovski (34-23, 2 NC) is one of the longest tenured fighters in UFC history. The 45-year-old heavyweight makes his 42nd walk to the octagon at UFC 303 in hopes of halting a three-fight losing skid that has seen him stumble to the likes of Marcos Rogerio de Lima, Don’Tale Mayes, and Waldo Cortes-Acosta.

Prior to that, Arlovski won four straight UFC bouts from April 2021 to April 2022, and six of his previous seven.

Buday (13-2) also looks to climb back into the win column after suffering his first UFC loss in December with a second-round stoppage at the hands of Shamil Gaziev.

A 32-year-old native of Slovakia, Buday won four consecutive bouts to kick off his UFC run prior to that setback, beating Chris Barnett, Lukasz Brzeski, Jake Collier, and Josh Parisian.

UFC 303 is headlined by McGregor’s return from a three-year layoff in a welterweight bout against fellow The Ultimate Fighter 31 coach Michael Chandler.

An updated UFC 303 fight card can be seen below.

• Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler
• Jamahal Hill vs. Khalil Rountree Jr.
• Mayra Bueno Silva vs. Macy Chiasson
• Cub Swanson vs. Andre Fili
• Andrei Arlovski vs. Martin Buday
• Ricky Simon vs. Vinicius Oliveira
• Joe Pyfer vs. Marc-Andre Barriault
• Payton Talbott vs. Yanis Ghemmouri
• Michelle Waterson-Gomez vs. Gillian Robertson
• Rei Tsuruya vs. Carlos Hernandez