Ottman Azaitar and Matt Frevola will finally meet in the cage, as they’re set to fight on November 12th at UFC 281 at the world-famous Madison Square Garden.
The potatoes incident
The two of them almost met at UFC 257. The event held on Fight Island inside the bubble was one of the first to use strict COVID-19 testing protocols. Due to these protocols, no unauthorized person could enter the bubble. However, the Moroccan fighter and his corner man cut off their wristbands and gave them to an undisclosed person. This individual entered the restricted area and delivered a mysterious bag to Azaitar. It was later revealed by ‘Bulldozer’s’ manager, Azi Abdelaziz, that the bag contained potatoes.
This incident led to the cancelation of the Azaitar vs. Fevola matchup. From there it only got worse as Dana White announced that the Moroccan will be cut from the promotion. He said in his interview with MMA Junkie:
“He and his team cut their wristbands off and got them to people on the outside, one guy. This guy got inside the bubble, went in through a room, shimmied down four balconies, went in through (Azaitar’s) balcony, and dropped off a bag of we don’t know what. Then he changed his clothes and went back outside of the bubble. We got everything on camera, we saw the whole thing, and how it all went down, pulled his fight and cut him.”
Luckily for Azaitar, the UFC president changed his mind. As for Frevola, he took on Arman Tsarukyan in the prelims of UFC 257. The American lost that fight via the Unanimous Decision.
Finally, the matchup will take place inside the world’s most famous arena, Madison Square Garden. ‘The Steamrolla’ broke the news on his social media in a rather unique fashion:
Fighters’ profiles
Azaitar has an unblemished 13 – 0 MMA record. Impressively enough, he won 12 of his fight within the time limit, with 10 TKO and KO finishes. He submitted his opposition on two different occasions and only once was awarded the win by the judges. The Moroccan was inactive since the fight cancelation at UFC 257 back in January 2021.
Frevola sports a 9 – 3 – 1 record. He started his professional career with a six-fight winning streak. It was put to an end in his UFC debut by Marco Polo Reyes at UFC Fight Night 124. Next, he bounced back with two consecutive wins only to lose to the aforementioned Tsaruyan. His bad luck continued as he lost to Terrance McKiney. The American fighter made his way back to the winning column by defeating Genaro Valdez at UFC 270.
