UFC on ESPN+ 32: Ali Alqaisi vs. Irwin Rivera added to Aug. 8 event

Jordan is on the UFC map.

Ali Alqaisi has become the first Jordanian-born fighter to sign for the UFC, and will face Irwin Rivera in a bantamweight matchup on the UFC on ESPN+ 32 card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Aug. 8.

MMA Junkie confirmed the booking with two people with knowledge of the situation. The people requested anonymity because the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

Alqaisi (8-3 MMA, 0-0 UFC), who’s won his past five in a row, joins Mounir Lazzez as the second Arab fighter to get signed to the UFC this year. He is coming off a unanimous decision win over Jeremy Pacatiw last November at BRAVE CF 29.

Former Titan FC bantamweight champion Rivera (9-5 MMA, 0-1 UFC) stepped in on short notice to face Giga Chikadze at UFC on ESPN 8 in a featherweight bout, but fell short in a unanimous decision loss. Now he will drop back down to 135 pounds to face Alqaisi.

With the addition, the UFC on ESPN+ 32 lineup for Aug. 8 includes:

• Derrick Lewis vs. Aleksei Oleinik
• Omari Akhmedov vs. Chris Weidman
• Yana Kunitskaya vs. Ketlen Vieira
• Andrew Sanchez vs. Wellington Turman
• Peter Barrett vs. Steve Garcia
• Nasrat Haqparast vs. Alex Munoz
• Tim Means vs. Laureano Staropoli
• Alex Caceres vs. Giga Chikadze
• Justin Jaynes vs. Gavin Tucker
• Maki Pitolo vs. Darren Stewart
• Ali Alqaisi vs. Irwin Rivera