Gittins will head to Rome to take on Italian contender Alessandro Giordano in a five-round title fight at the event, which takes place March 8 at the PalaPellicone. The event will stream live on UFC Fight Pass.
It’s a matchup that sees Gittins switch targets after he was originally set to take on bantamweight PrizeFighter winner Shirzad Qadrian. But with Qadrian observing Ramadan in March, he has agreed to step aside to allow Giordano to challenge for the belt in his temporary absence.
After a stint at featherweight, Gittins returned to the bantamweight division for a short-notice title opportunity and defeated Scottish contender Reece McEwan via unanimous decision at Cage Warriors 164 to capture the vacant title.
“The Nightmare” went on to retain the title with a fifth-round rear-naked choke finish of America’s Roberto Hernandez at Cage Warriors 168. And when Qadrian captured the bantamweight PrizeFighter crown, the pair were set for a title match in early 2025.
However, that clash may have to wait, and will depend on Gittins’ upcoming assignment, as he heads into Giordano’s back yard in a bid to register his second defence of his title.
Giordano has earned his shot at the gold after claiming a hat-trick of eye-catching victories in 2024. A one-shot KO of Sam Kelly kick-started his run at Cage Warriors 168, and he followed up with a third-round submission of former champion Michele Martignoni in one of 2024’s fights of the year in a PrizeFighter alternate bout at Cage Warriors 174.
Giordano showed his grit once again at Cage Warriors 179 as he edged Emanuele Zaccaria by split decision to take his active win streak to three and put him in the frame for a title shot.
That opportunity comes on home soil on March 8, where a raucous Italian crowd is sure to be right behind the 27-year-old Naples native as he goes for Cage Warriors gold for the first time.
Gittins vs. Giordano tops a 17-bout fight card for Rome that will also see Italy’s Cage Warriors middleweight champion Dario Bellandi defend his 185-pound title, with a number of additional fighters set to be added to planned matchups in due course.
“We sold out the PalaPellecone in four weeks last year,” said Cage Warriors president Graham Boylan.
“The fans wanted more, so we’ve increased the capacity to kick off a huge run of international shows with a bang.
“There’s a lot of history with the Cage Warriors bantamweight title in Italy, and Alessandro Giordano wants to write his chapter on March 8.
“Make no mistake, though, Liam Gittins doesn’t mind walking into enemy territory to defend the belt he worked so hard to win.
“The Italian fans are some of the best in the world, and with the fights we’re bringing, I’m expecting Cage Warriors 183 to set the standard for European MMA in 2025!”
Cage Warriors 183: Confirmed bouts
- Liam Gittins (c) vs. Alessandro Giordano – for bantamweight title
- Dario Bellandi (c) vs. TBC – for middleweight title
- Stefano Paterno vs. TBC – welterweight
- Dylan Hazan vs. Michelangelo Lupoli – flyweight
- Giuseppe Mastrogiacomo vs. TBC – featherweight
- Michael Pagani vs. Konstantinos Ntelis – lightweight
- Simone D’Anna vs. Gianluca Scottoli – featherweight
- Simone Patrizi vs. Adam Shelley – lightweight
- Marco Doda vs. Manuel Del Valle – welterweight
- Giuseppe Ruggeri vs. Orlando Prins – featherweight
- Pietro Mochetti vs. Yohan Salvador – bantamweight
- Mario Mingaj vs. Robin Roos – middleweight
- Davide Scarano vs. Florian Doskja – flyweight
- Damiano Scogna vs. TBC – bantamweight
- Niko Ceraglia vs. TBC – featherweight
- Yuri Massacesi vs. Francesco Tumminiello – featherweight
- Luca Finocchio vs. Lessio Ferguglia – welterweight
