Sean Strickland's Opponent Ezra Elliott Signs with UFC for Late-Notice Fight

Sean Strickland's opponent Ezra Elliott has signed with the UFC for a late-notice fight at UFC Oklahoma City.

What happened?

Ezra Elliott, a product of the MMA Lab in Arizona, will make his UFC debut against Damien Anderson at UFC Oklahoma City. The event, which takes place at the Paycom Center, has received a late addition during fight week.

Why it matters for Sean Strickland

Sean Strickland, a middleweight contender, is scheduled to face Khamzat Chimaev in a highly anticipated bout. However, the addition of Elliott and Anderson to the card adds an extra layer of excitement to the event.

What comes next?

Elliott, who has a 4-0 amateur record, made his professional debut in 2024 and has since accumulated a 4-0 record with three first-round submissions and one knockout. Anderson, ranked as the #19 prospect worldwide by MMA Prospect Vault, has extensive experience in competitive grappling and has shown off his skills with three-straight submissions.

Elliott's first year as a pro saw him compete a total of three times but amass less than a round of cage time, as he stopped Anthony Curtiss with strikes in his debut before securing back-to-back wins via D'arce choke. That first year set the tone for Elliott's career thus far, as he also submitted all three of his opponents in the first round in 2025 before he needed 3 minutes and 41 seconds to knock out Ashton Caniglia in his most recent outing in May, which stands as the longest fight of his pro career.

Anderson, on the other hand, made his pro MMA debut the same year as his lone amateur bout when he entered the cage at Fury Challenger Series 9, where he stopped Ray Vaiza with strikes in just over two minutes. Anderson remained with Fury FC for his next three fights and showed off his grappling skills with three-straight submissions, and in December 2024 he also submitted Sandrey Silva at UFC Fight Pass Invitational 9.

The 29-year-old most recently fought in February at Cage Fury FC 150, where he submitted Hondo Gutierrez with a kneebar in less than two minutes.

UFC Oklahoma City Fight Card

The event, which marks the UFC's first visit to Oklahoma in nearly ten years, will feature a stacked card with 11 fights, including the highly anticipated bout between Dricus du Plessis and Kamaru Usman. The co-main event will see Jared Cannonier take on Christian Leroy Duncan.

The full fight card for UFC Oklahoma City is as follows:

* Main Event: Dricus du Plessis vs. Kamaru Usman * Co-Main Event: Jared Cannonier vs. Christian Leroy Duncan * Chase Hooper vs. Mitch Ramirez * Tabatha Ricci vs. Fatima Kline * Tommy McMillen vs. Alberto Montes * Jose Delgado vs. Austin Bashi * Seok Hyeon Ko vs. Jean-Paul Lebosnoyani * Felipe Franco vs. Levi Rodrigues Jr. * Alden Coria vs. Stewart Nicoll * Alvin Hines vs. RJ Harris * Dione Barbosa vs. Anna Melisano * Damien Anderson vs. Ezra Elliott

The event will take place on [Date] at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City.