UFC books Ode Osbourne for flyweight debut July 17 vs. Amir Albazi

Ode Osbourne is giving flyweight a try.

The UFC has booked a 125-pound matchup between Osbourne (9-3 MMA, 1-1 UFC) and Amir Albazi for its upcoming July 17 event. The card doesn’t have a publicly known location or venue at this time.

Two people with knowledge of the matchup informed MMA Junkie of the booking Tuesday but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

Osbourne (9-3 MMA, 1-1 UFC) was expected to make his flyweight debut vs. Jerome Rivera in January. However, Osbourne withdrew from the bout for an undisclosed reason. Osbourne was then booked against Denys Bondar in February at a 140-pound catchweight.

When Bondar withdrew, Rivera stepped in. The matchup that was originally supposed to happen at flyweight instead took place at featherweight. Osbourne knocked out Rivera in 26 seconds. The victory entered Osbourne back into the win column after a promotional debut loss to Brian Kelleher.

Meanwhile, Sweden’s Albazi (14-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) is unbeaten since he signed with the promotion in mid-2020. After a first-round submission of Malcolm Gordon in July, Albazi won a unanimous decision over Zhalgas Zhumagulov at UFC 257 in January.

With the addition, the July 17 lineup includes:

• Marion Reneau vs. Miesha Tate
• Amir Albazi vs. Ode Osbourne