Rafa Garcia Steps in to Fight Nasrat Haqparast at UFC Vegas 21

Overtime Heroics Editorial

926 days ago

Don Madge has pulled out of this weekend’s event, Rafa Garcia and Nasrat Haqparast will now compete on the prelims of UFC Vegas 21. Newcomer Garcia replaces Madge, who had to pull out of the bout because of visa issues, according to his Instagram post. This event takes place at the UFC Apex this Saturday, with Leon Edwards vs Belal Muhammad headlining the event.

Rafa Garcia and Nasrat Haqparast Meeting at Lightweight

Rafa “Gifted” Garcia (12-0, 0-0 UFC) will make his debut in the promotion this weekend on just four days notice.

It’s been 13 months since the Mexican’s last fight, where he became a champion for the first time, winning on a unanimous decision against Humberto Bandenay in Combate Americas.

The 26-year old has an extremely impressive submission record, with seven submissions to his name. He also won his first five bouts by submitting his opponent. With Garcia taking the fight on short notice this will make him the underdog in this one.

Nasrat Haqparast (12-3, 4-2 UFC) will look to go on a two-fight win-streak after he was victorious against Alexander Munoz back in August.

The German’s professional MMA career started in 2012 after he was submitted in the first round to Adrian Ruf. In his next eight bouts, Haqparast put on an impressive showing with eight knockouts, six coming in the first round.

After an 8-1 record, he was signed by the UFC, to fight Marcin Held in 2017. A dreaded start for Haqparast, as he lost via unanimous decision.

Three wins on the bounce came for Haqparast before being knocked out to Drew Dober in the first round. He put in a Fight of the Night and Performance of the Night bonus against Thibault Gouti and Joaquim Silva.

We know these two will meet on the prelims, and it will certainly be one to watch. Here’s how the rest of UFC Vegas 21 looks on Saturday night:

Leon Edwards vs Belal Muhammad
Misha Cirkunov vs Ryan Spann
Dan Ige vs Gavin Tucker
Manel Kape vs Matheus Nicolau
Davey Grant vs Jonathan Martinez
Eryk Anders vs Darren Stewart
Angela Hill vs Ashley Yoder
Jinh Yu Frey vs Gloria de Paula
Matthew Semelsberger vs Jason Witt
Charles Jourdain vs Marcelo Rojo
Ray Rodriguez vs Rani Yahya
Rafa Garcia vs Nasrat Haqparast
J.J. Aldrich vs Cortney Casey

Who do you see winning the fight between Rafa Garcia and Nasrat Haqparast? Let us know your prediction in the comments below!

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Featured Image Credits to Embed from Getty Images

Rafa Garcia and Nasrat Haqparast Rafa Garcia and Nasrat Haqparast