Brazil's former UFC heavyweight world champion Fabricio Werdum is intent on staying on track for another world title shot, after an unconventional leadup to his headline fight in Sydney on Sunday.
Werdum, the No.2-ranked contender, will fight eighth-rated Marcin Tybura of Poland at Qudos Bank Arena.
The 40-year-old Brazilian was charged for allegedly using a boomerang to attack fellow fighter Colby Covington in a daylight street brawl outside a luxury hotel in Sydney's CBD on Thursday.
Werdum on Saturday weighed in around one kilo heavier than his opponent.
"I want to show again I'm the best fighter in the world," Werdum said on the UFC website.
Tybura, 32, is coming off a win over former world champion Andrei Arlovski.
"Big respect for Fabricio, but I'm here to chase my goal, so I'll leave everything in the octagon tomorrow to win this fight," Tybura said after the weigh-in.
The co-main event is an all-Australian women's flyweight clash between Bec Rawlings and Jessica-Rose Clark, with the latter coming in over the weight limit.
The 13-bout card is populated primarily by Australian fighters, with a smattering of overseas combatants.
Among the more familiar Australian names on the undercard are Victorians and UFC stalwarts Jake Matthews and Daniel Kelly.
Matthews, who is coming back from hip surgery, has moved up from lightweight to welterweight, where he will fight Serbian.Bojan Velickovic.
Four-time Australian Olympic judo representative Kelly will fight Canada's Elias Theodorou.
Former Sydney Roosters under-20 rugby league player Tai Tuivasa will make his UFC debut at heavyweight against American Rashad Coulter.
Tuivasa hopes to become the first Australian indigenous fighter to win a UFC bout.
