Curtis Blaydes vs. Rizvan Kuniev shifted from Seattle

Curtis Blaydes will have to wait a few extra weeks for his attempt to rebound from an interim title fight loss to Tom Aspinall.

The heavyweight matchup between Blaydes (18-5 MMA, 13-5 UFC) and octagon newcomer Rizvan Kuniev, which was originally scheduled to take place at UFC Fight Night 252 on Feb. 22 in Seattle, has now been shifted to UFC 313 on March 8 in Las Vegas.

A person with knowledge of the situation told MMA Junkie of the change on Wednesday, but the exact reason for the change in date is unknown. The person requested anonymity because the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

Blaydes, No. 7 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie heavyweight rankings, got the rematch with Aspinall for the interim belt after a 4-1 stretch that included a victory over Aspinall by injury TKO. “Razor,” now 33, has been a notable part of the division since his debut in April 2016, and will look to start his build back up to contention.

He will have to do against Kuniev (13-2-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC), who was signed to the UFC in August following a first-round TKO win at DWCS 68. The 32-year-old has also faced notable such as PFL’s Renan Ferreira and UFC veterans Anthony Hamilton and Justin Willis.

Kuniev was supposed to make his debut at UFC 310 in December, but opponent Martin Buday withdrew and the matchup was scratched. Now after another delay, he will hope the third time’s the charm to make his official debut.

The latest UFC 313 lineup now includes:

• Alex Pereira vs. Magomed Ankalaev – for light heavyweight title
• Justin Gaethje vs. Dan Hooker
• Iasmin Lucindo vs. Amanda Lemos
• Brunno Ferreira vs. Armen Petrosyan
• Ozzy Diaz vs. Djorden Santos
• Carlos Leal vs. Alex Morono
• Francis Marshall vs. Mairon Santos
• Bruno Silva vs. Joshua Van
• Chris Gutierrez vs. Jean Matsumoto
• King Green vs. Mauricio Ruffy
• Curtis Blaydes vs. Rizvan Kuniev

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 313.