On February 21, UFC fans in Houston will have plenty to celebrate as the promotion rolls into town after a span of four years with another loaded Fight Night card. The buzz was already sky high with Sean Strickland vs Anthony Hernandez locked in as the middleweight headliner. Now, the UFC has poured even more fuel on the fire.

Along with the main event, the promotion had already announced a featherweight showdown between Dan Ige and Melquizael Costa. The Julianna Miller vs Carli Judice matchup was also confirmed earlier. And now, Dana White and the matchmakers have decided to turn things up a notch by unveiling 11 more fights for the card in a major announcement.

“UFC Houston: 11 new fights added to Sean Strickland vs. Anthony Hernandez event” MMA Fighting shared on X. Here’s the full list of bouts confirmed for the February 21 card at the Toyota Center:

• Sean Strickland vs. Anthony Hernandez (Middleweight) (Main event) 
• Dan Ige vs. Melquizael Costa (Featherweight) 
• Serghei Spivac vs. Ante Delija (Heavyweight) 
• Michel Pereira vs. Zachary Reese (Middleweight) 
• Alden Coria vs. Luis Gurule (M-Flyweight) 
• Jordan Leavitt vs. Yadier del Valle (Lightweight) 
• Nora Cornolle vs. Joselyne Edwards (W-Bantamweight) 
• Jean-Paul Lebosnoyani vs. Austin Vanderford (Welterweight) 
• Jacobe Smith vs. Seokhyeon Ko (Welterweight) 
• Chidi Njokuani vs. Carlos Leal (Welterweight) 
• Juliana Miller vs. Carli Judice (W-Flyweight) 
• Alibi Idiris vs. Ode Osbourne (M-Flyweight)  

Now, with the inclusion of the main event between Sean Strickland and Anthony Hernandez, the entire card is shaping up like a banger with eleven fights heading into Texas. However, apart from the headliner, the featherweight bout between Dan Ige and Melquizael Costa is also expected to grab plenty of attention. The veteran 145er lost his last fight against Patricio ‘Pitbull’ at UFC 318, so it will be interesting to see if Dan Ige can bounce back against an opponent riding a five-fight winning streak.

Other than that, the heavyweight showdown between Sergei Spivac and Ante Delija should also bring serious excitement, as both men carry heavy firepower. That said, ahead of the much-anticipated fight night event, there is also some positive news surfacing from the former middleweight champion’s corner, as he appears to have cleared all the differences with his long-time coach.

Sean Strickland reunites with Eric Nicksick ahead of UFC Houston event  

After Strickland failed to reclaim his title against Dricus du Plessis at UFC 312, his coach, Eric Nicksick, was clearly frustrated. The reason was simple. ‘Tarzan’ did not push the pace in the later rounds, which allowed ‘Stillknocks’ to take over and deliver a dominant performance en route to winning the rematch.

Disappointed with Strickland’s showing, Nicksick publicly criticized his fighter, creating a brief rift between them. However, ahead of the UFC Houston Fight Night clash against Anthony Hernandez, the duo appears to have cleared the air and returned to normal.

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“Yes, sir, I’m there. “First and foremost, I think for me, there was a lot of learning experiences from that situation, lack of communication on both of our parts. But I was going through a lot personally with my dad’s health, and then traveling, and away from home, and all these things compiled into like kind of the way that I felt the complexion of the camp was and some of the injuries that Sean was dealing with. And it really just boils down to the fact that like we just got to be better at our communication with one another, you know, and that was it,” the Xtreme Couture coach told MMA Fighting.

Now, with Nicksick back in the camp, it is expected that Strickland will show noticeable improvement and once again stay in the title conversation. But first, he has to get past ‘Fluffy’, which will not be easy at all. Hernandez arguably owns one of the most dominant ground games in the division, second only to Khamzat Chimaev.

That said, do you think the former middleweight champion can bring out his best version in the next fight? Let us know in the comments section below.