Knockout artist Joaquin Buckley will get his 2021 campaign underway quickly with a fight against Alessio Di Chirico at UFC Fight Night 184 on January 16th during the promotion’s latest stint on Fight Island.
Buckley gained overnight notoriety earlier this year when a video highlight of his stunning spinning back kick knockout against Impa Kasanganay became the UFC’s most-viral Tweet off all-time with over 12 million views.
Buckley has since proved that this wasn’t just a one-off by going on to also knockout Jordan Wright with punches last month, taking the former Bellator and LFA fighter’s career record to 12-3.
Despite those impressive exploits, the UFC are apparently still taking it easy with the 26-year-old’s development as he’s now going up against Chirico, who is barely hanging on to his spot on the UFC roster after losing his last three fights in a row.
That dip in form began with a decision loss to Kevin Holland and he’s since dropped two more decisions against Makhmud Muradov and Zak Cummings, leaving him with only a 3-5 record during his UFC run to date.
Buckley vs. Di Chirico joins a UFC Fight Night 184 card that’s headlined by a featherweight fight between former champion Max Holloway and Calvin Kattar.
