Anthony Pettis vs Neeraj Goyat: former UFC champion to box in India on 23 January 2027

Former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis will box India's Neeraj Goyat on Saturday 23 January 2027, in a six-round fight at 154 pounds that headlines "Goyat vs. Pettis: The Indian Uprising", Sherdog reported. Most Valuable Promotions (MVP), the company run by Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian, is promoting it with IPBL Boxing, and the Indian Boxing Council is sanctioning it. MVP called it "the biggest card in Indian boxing history" in a post on X on 14 October.

The fight at a glance

The fighters

Neeraj Goyat (21-4-2, 9 KOs), 34, is a former WBC Asia champion who signed with MVP in 2024. His best-known win came on the Jake Paul against Mike Tyson undercard in Texas, a unanimous decision over Brazilian YouTuber Whindersson Nunes. MVP says he "returns home for one of the biggest fights of his career".

Anthony Pettis, 39, won the WEC lightweight title in 2010 and the UFC lightweight title in 2013, famous for the "Showtime kick" off the cage against Benson Henderson. He turned to boxing in April 2023 and beat Roy Jones Jr. by majority decision in his pro debut.

For fans in Pakistan

India is five and a half hours ahead of GMT and half an hour ahead of Pakistan, so a main event in India's evening prime time lands in Pakistan's evening too: a 10pm IST walkout would be 9:30pm PKT. Start times and the streaming platform have not been announced; we will add them when MVP does. For the UFC's own fights in Pakistan time, see our UFC schedule in Pakistan time.