Former Mauricio Ruffy Foe Set for UFC Debut on March 14

Manoel Sousa is scheduled to make his UFC debut against Bolaji Oki at UFC Fight Night 269 on March 14 at the Apex in Las Vegas, following his contract-winning knockout on Dana White's Contender Series last year. The matchup features Manoel Sousa (13-1) and Bolaji Oki (10-3) at UFC Fight Night 269, aligning two lightweights tracked by UFC talent evaluators. Sousa enters his UFC debut with 11 finishes in 13 wins, while Oki is 2-2 in the UFC since 2024. Sousa previously handed Mauricio Ruffy his only professional defeat via knockout in 2019 outside the UFC. Oki seeks to rebound from a knockout loss to Mason Jones. Sousa's lone defeat came against Archie Colgan in 2024.