Nathaniel Wood will make his return to the cage at UFC London on 22 July to take on Andre Fili.
The Londoner fought twice in 2022 after moving up to featherweight, recording wins against Charles Rosa and Charles Jourdain having lost two of his previous three.
A huge domestic showdown with Manchester’s Lerone Murphy was scheduled for UFC 286 in the capital in March, only for that bout to scrapped after Wood suffered a nasty knee injury in what he described as a ‘freak accident’ in training.
Metro.co.uk understands Wood will now be back in action against Fili (22 wins, nine defeats) when the promotion returns to London this summer.
Fili recently got himself back to winning ways, edging past Bill Algeo last September after no wins in his previous three.
UFC is set to return to the O2 Arena for the second time this year following Leon Edwards’ thrilling title defence against Kamaru Usman in March.
Heavyweight contender Tom Aspinall will make his own return from injury to headline the card against Marcin Tybura.
The Briton suffered a serious knee injury just 15 seconds into last July’s event against Curtis Blaydes and has not fought since suffering his first loss since 2016.
Molly McCann also returns to action, taking on Julija Stoliarenko at flyweight.
Welterweight champion Edwards will not be in action back on UK soil with the Birmingham fighter targeting a return in Abu Dhabi in October.
In the meantime, Edwards will swap the octagon for the goalposts when he competes in Soccer Aid for UNICEF at Old Trafford next month.
The 30-year-old will line up in goal alongside the likes of Usain Bolt and Tommy Fury against a World XI on 11 June.
‘It’s an honour for me to be playing and helping raise money for such a great cause,’ Edwards said. ‘Come and support us – Soccer Aid is a great family day out. Through MMA I have built a great platform and fanbase. I hope others will support me in raising money for children and families across the world.’
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