Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has added two last-minute bouts featuring promotional newcomers to UFC Vegas 117 this weekend (Sat., May 16, 2026) inside the Meta Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada.
On just five days’ notice, Ukrainian Lightweight prospect and (MMAMania.com’s April Prospect of the Month) Artur Miniev has stepped in to face undefeated Contender Series signee Tommy Gantt after Trey Ogden was forced out of the matchup. Also, former Bellator Light Heavyweight Christian Edwards will make his
UFC debut against Modestas Bukauskas after Rodolfo Bellato withdrew from the event.
In addition, the Welterweight bout between Jeremiah Wells and Nicolas Dalby has been canceled due to an injury suffered by Dalby.
Miniev (7-0) is considered one of the more exciting unsigned Lightweights on the regional scene. The 24-year-old owns four first-round knockouts and most recently blasted out longtime Bellator veteran Derek Campos in the opening round. Overall, he holds an 84 percent finish rate with six finishes in seven victories.
Meanwhile, Gantt (11-0) earned his UFC contract on Season 9 of Contender Series after submitting Adam Livingston in the first round. The undefeated wrestler has proven to be dangerous everywhere, holding five knockout wins and five submission victories
Bukauskas (19-7) has quietly put together a strong second UFC run after fighting his way back to the promotion following an earlier release. While he was stopped by Nikita Krylov in his most recent outing (watch highlights), “The Baltic Gladiator” had won four straight beforehand with three finishes.
As for Edwards (8-4), the former Bellator prospect was once hyped as a training partner and protege of Jon Jones. However, his momentum collapsed after suffering a shocking knockout loss to Ben Parrish as a massive +1000 betting favorite. After being released by Bellator, Edwards rebuilt himself on the regional scene, going 3-1 before receiving the UFC call.
Here is the finalized UFC Vegas 117 card:
Arnold Allen vs. Melquizael Costa
Dooho Choi vs. Daniel Santos
Juan Diaz vs. Malcolm Wellmaker
Modestas Bukauskas vs. Christian Edwards
Timmy Cuamba vs. Bernardo Sopaj
Nikolay Veretennikov vs. Khaos Williams
Ivan Erslan vs. Tuco Tokkos
Thomas Gantt vs. Artur Miniev
Jacqueline Cavalcanti vs. Ketlen Vieira
Cody Brundage vs. Andre Petroski
Alice Ardelean vs. Polyana Viana
Daniel Barez vs. Luis Gurule
Shauna Bannon vs. Nicolle Caliari
