Roman Dolidze steps in on 8 days’ notice to face Anthony Smith at UFC 303

Anthony Smith will fight at UFC 303 after all.

The UFC announced Friday that Smith now faces middleweight contender Roman Dolidze at next Saturday’s pay-per-view card at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Dolidze steps in — and up a weight class — on eight days’ notice as a replacement for Carlos Ulberg, who was scratched from the card due to undisclosed reasons.

MMA Fighting previously reported that Dolidze was the frontrunner to replace Ulberg, but the bout had yet to be finalized. Now it appears all systems are go for the fight.

After an incredible 2022 campaign where he went 3-0 with three stoppage victories, Dolidze has had a tough run. Dolidze suffered a decision loss to Marvin Vettori at UFC 286 in his lone fight of 2023. The 35-year-old then competed in February, losing a decision to Nassourdine Imavov in the main event of UFC Vegas 85.

Meanwhile, Smith looks to carry the momentum of his first-round submission win against Vitor Petrino at UFC 301 in May into the International Fight Week card on June 29.