Elizeu Zaleski’s next task will be to welcome an unbeaten fighter to the octagon.
MMA Fighting confirmed with people with knowledge of the potential booking that Zaleski (22-7) is in talks to fight Kazakhstan’s Shavkat Rakhmonov (12-0) at UFC 254 on Oct. 24 in Abu Dhabi. The matchup was first reported by Combate.
Zaleski, 33, finds himself in a minor slump after winning seven straight fights from April 2016 to March 2019. He has lost two of his last three, most recently dropping a split decision to Muslim Salikhov at UFC 251, which put Zaleski’s UFC record at 8-3.