CAPE TOWN – EFC flyweight champion Nkazimulo Zulu could return to the hexagon as soon as May if his recovery goes to plan.
Zulu was set to face interim flyweight champion JP Buys – crowned during Zulu’s time as a competitor on the UFC’s Ultimate Fighter reality show – at EFC 57 in March, but was hit by a car while out jogging in preparation for the bout in late January.
EFC president Cairo Howarth has confirmed that fight could be added to the May 13 EFC 59 card, if Zulu recovers in time.
“Zulu is doing great. Fortunately he came away from the accident without any broken bones, and we are hoping for a fairly quick recovery,” Howarth said in an interview with Independent Media.
“If all goes well then we are planning to put the fight on with Buys in May at EFC 59 at Carnival City.”
Zulu will be looking to make a major statement in his return to EFC competition, after he was eliminated from the Ultimate Fighter in the early rounds.
He subsequently spent several months training with former UFC flyweight title challenger and Olympic wrestling gold medallist Henry Cejudo to improve his ground game, and Buys represents a stern test of whether he has made progress.
The title unification bout will also be the first time that both Zulu and Buys will appear in a live broadcast on SABC, following the EFC’s partnership with the national broadcaster.
The agreement means that all ten scheduled events for 2017 will be broadcast live on SABC 3, in addition to bouts from past events being shown every Saturday night between 9pm and 12pm.
Saturday 11 February will see the first of these broadcasts take place, with the first live event shown on March 4.