Australia will be getting its second UFC card of 2023 later this year, with UFC 293 to be held in Sydney on September 10.
Sydney's Qudos Bank Arena will play host to the card, with Australian MMA fans eager for more of the Down Under action that they got when the UFC visited Perth in February.
The UFC's last visit to Australia provided plenty of fireworks from home-grown fighters, but what can we expect to see from the company's sixth trip to the Harbour City?
MORE: UFC 293 ticket information
Who will be fighting at UFC 293 in Sydney?
Bout order not set.
Israel Adesanya vs. Sean Strickland
Israel Adesanya will defend his middleweight championship against controversial fighter Sean Strickland at UFC 293, after challenger Dricus Du Plessis backed out of the card.
According to Adesanya, who took to Instagram to call out Du Plessis, the South African withdrew from UFC 293 because of a short turnaround from his shock win over Aussie Robert Whittaker.
Adesanya proceeded to invite Strickland to a title fight, with the middleweight saying in an interview with reporter Helen Yee he was open to the fight if he was paid enough.
UFC President Dana White has since confirmed the main event via social media, as well as a number of other fights for the blockbuster Sydney card.
BREAKING: Sydney, your #UFC293 main event is official!! 🚨🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/D2t7xTy8Ns
— UFC (@ufc) August 8, 2023
Tai Tuivasa vs. Alexander Volkov
The UFC couldn't put a show on in his hometown without Bam Bam featuring.
Tuivasa, 30, is booked to take on six-foot-seven Russian striker Volkov.
The vastly experienced 34-year-old comes into the bout with a 36-10 record as a professional and holds wins over the likes of Fabricio Werdum and Alistair Overeem.
Tuivasa hasn't fought since being knocked out by Sergey Pavlovich in December and will be hoping to avoid three straight losses when he takes on Volkov in front of what is sure to be a raucous home crowd.
Manel Kape vs. Felipe dos Santos
New Zealand's former flyweight title challenger France was set to be in action, taking on Angola's Manel Kape.
Unfortunately, a concussion in training forced him out of the bout.
In France's place steps UFC newcomer Felipe dos Santos.
Kape has won three on the trot but has only had one fight since the start of 2022, while 22-year-old dos Santos is undefeated in seven fights.
Justin Tafa vs. Austen Lane 2
New Zealander Justin "Bad Man" Tafa is set to enter to UFC octagon for a rematch with American heavyweight Austen Lane.
The pair previously fought in June, with the fight called a no-contest after a brutal accidental eye-poke to Tafa.
Tyson Pedro vs Anton Turkalj
Hometown hero Tyson Pedro will face Swedish up-and-comer Anton Turkalj in three rounds at UFC 293.
The Australian light heavyweight last fought at UFC 284 in Perth, and will be looking for a better result in Sydney.
Turkalj has lost in two UFC appearances, after appearing in Dana White's Contender Series last year.
Carlos Ulberg vs. Da Woon Jung
New Zealander Carlos Ulberg will go up against South Korea's Da Woon Jung in a light heavyweight bout.
Ulberg is an up-and-comer in the UFC with plenty of momentum, coming into this clash with an 8-1 record, and riding a four-fight win streak.
But Jung will be no easy win for the Kiwi - three years Ulberg's junior, Jung has already had more than double the fights of his opponent, a 15-4 record, despite coming off of two straight losses.
Jack Jenkins vs. Jose ‘Chepe’ Mariscal
Australian fighter Jack Jenkins has joined the list of homegrown stars taking part in UFC 293.
He has been confirmed to take on American Jose Mariscal in a flyweight battle.
Jenkins has a 12-2 record as a mixed martial artist, with two wins at UFC level, with Mariscal picked up his maiden UFC win in June.
Jamie Mullarkey vs. John Makdessi
Central Coast-born Jamie Mullarkey is the latest Australian addition to the event, booked to fight Canadian veteran John Makdessi in a lightweight bout.
There is a decade between the fighters when it comes to age - Mullarkey, 28 versus Makdessi, 39 - but the Aussie has only been in four fewer fights than his upcoming opponent.
Blood Diamond vs. Charlie Radtke
New Zealand-based kickboxer Diamond will be looking to chalk up his first UFC victory on his third attempt when he welcomes American newcomer, Radtke, to the company.
Radtke, from Wisconsin, has a 7-3 professional record and both men will be going into this welterweight clash with a lot to prove.
Shane Young vs Gabriel Miranda
MMA Reporter Laete Viana says Young will once again fight in Australia, with a lightweight bout booked against Brazillian submission artist Miranda.
The Kiwi is coming off three-straight losses and will be desperate to make an impression in Sydney.
Cancelled bouts
Casey O'Neill vs. Viviane Araujo
O'Neill was looking to bounce back from the first-ever loss, when she went down to Jennifer Maia in March of this year, after nine consecutive wins to begin her career.
Viviane Araujo was also looking to right the ship after some rocky performances, losing three of her last four fights.
Unfortunately, an injury to O'Neill means this one is off the card.
Will Alex Volkanovski fight at UFC 293 in Sydney?
The 145-pound king is set to miss the card in Sydney due to a lingering arm injury, which will see Volkanovski undergo surgery after his win over Rodriguez on July 8th.
Despite being just a few months shy of his 35th birthday, “Alexander The Great” is still chasing more opportunities for the future and initially didn’t rule out backing up to fight at UFC 293 in Sydney.
“You never know. If there’s anyone who could do it, it’s definitely me,” he said.
“It’s just when you’re a champion, it’s hard to just fight anybody. You’ve got to fight the right opponents. If there was someone already there and it was an easy option, yeah, we probably would do it.
“We’ll see, I’ll never say never, I think I can turn around, hopefully, we can turn around with no injuries. I’d be lying if I said I’m not working on it.”
The upcoming surgery will put any chance of a fight in front of his home fans in severe doubt, but Volkanovski is hopeful of returning to the octagon at least one more time in 2023.
One potential opponent is Georgia’s Ilia Topuria, who claimed a lopsided decision victory over Josh Emmett at the weekend to cement himself as the next man in line.
Speaking on The MMA Hour, Topuria put his hand up to take on Volkanovski on the road.
“I think Volkanovski is going to hold the belts, I think he will,” Topuria said.
“No f***ing problem [to fight Volkanovski in Australia]. If I’m the best in the world, I can beat him in Australia.
“In Las Vegas, in Miami, in Spain, wherever we go, I beat him. Like, location is no problem.”
The pair exchanged words at the end of UFC 290 in Las Vegas and appear destined for a showdown soon.
Will Robert Whittaker fight at UFC 293 in Sydney?
Whittaker's performance at UFC 290 has thrown a major spanner in the works and given the nature of his defeat to Dricus Du Plessis, the Aussie middleweight is almost certain to miss out on fighting in Sydney.
“I’d like to fight in September. A pay-per-view card is coming to Sydney so I would like to fight in September, whatever happens,” he told The Sporting News prior to the contender's bout in Las Vegas.
“I’m preparing for Dricus and I’m not looking past Dricus but I can say I want to fight on that card as well.
“If my body’s able to fight in September, I want to fight in September. I’m not really looking at the specifics of names because I’ve got to fight Dricus.”
Whittaker was hopeful of a rematch with Israel Adesanya, but will now be forced to take a different path back to the championship.