UFC alum Kendall Grove returns to MMA competition, headlines KSW 78

It’s been over three years since UFC alumnus Kendall Grove last stepped into an MMA cage for competition, but that will soon change.

Grove (24-18) will headline KSW 78 in a rematch against Michal Materla (31-9), the promotion officially announced Monday. The bout will be contested at a contracted weight of 195 pounds.

The card takes place Jan. 21 at Netto Arena in Szczecin, Poland and will be available for purchase on KSW TV.

The two fighters first met at KSW 23 in June 2013 when Materla defeated Grove by unanimous decision.

Grove, 40, most recently competed in MMA in August 2019. He also fought in bareknuckle boxing for BKFC in September 2020 when he was finished by Hector Lombard in 110 seconds.

Since his pro debut in 2003, Grove has competed all over the world for various major organizations. Following a stint on “The Ultimate Fighter, Season 3,” Grove competed 13 times in the UFC from 2006-2011 and compiled a 7-6 record. He then competed nine times for Bellator where he accumulated a 4-5 record.

Materla, 38, is a staple of KSW with 27 bouts and a 20-7 record for the promotion. Over the span of his most recent six outings, Materla is 4-2.

The current KSW 78 lineup includes:

• Michal Materla vs. Kendall Grove
• Radosław Paczuski vs. Tomasz Romanowski
• Borys Mankowski vs. Valeriu Mircea
• Roman Szymanski vs. Raul Tutarauli
• Lukasz Sudolski vs. TBA
• Marc Doussis vs. Rafal Kijanczuk
• Raimondas Krilavicius vs. Oskar Szczepaniak