Calvin Kattar vs. Youssef Zalal Set For UFC Fight Night 251

A featherweight fight between Calvin Kattar and Youssef Zalal has been added to UFC Fight Night 251 in Las Vegas on February 15th.

This will be seen as a must-win fight for the 36-year-old veteran Kattar given that he’s currently in the midst of a three-fight losing slump.

To be fair to him though he has consistently been going up against top-flight competition, with his defeats coming to Josh Emmett, Arnold Allen and most recently former bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling.

Despite his losing streak Kattar still holds the No.10 spot on the 145lb rankings heading into his next fight against the 28-year-old Zalal, who picked up three wins in a row in the Octagon in 2024 after returning to the promotion.

Zalal had previously had a 3-3-1 stint in the UFC between 2020-2021, winning his first three fights for the promotion before being released after going winless in his next four outings.

Three first-round finishes in a row on the regional scene led to him being reinstated to the UFC in 2024 however and continued that run of form by finishing Billy Quarantillo, Jamo Errens and Jack Shore by submission.

Kattar vs. Zalal joins a UFC Fight Night 251 card that will be headlined by a middleweight fight between Jared Cannonier and Gregory Rodrigues.