Ex-UFC Talent, Current Boxing Prospect Clay Collard to Fight at Top Rank Event on Aug. 22

Ultimate Fighting Championship talent turned boxing prospect Clay Collard will return to the squared circle when he meets Maurice Williams at a Top Rank event on Aug. 22.

The middleweight bout will be contested over six or eight rounds and will take place at the MGM Grand Conference Center in Las Vegas. The event is headlined by a heavyweight title eliminator between Eleider Alvarez and Joe Smith Jr. The main card streams on ESPN+ beginning at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT, while the preliminary draw — which includes Collard’s bout — begins on ESPN+ at 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT.

According to a release, Collard is a leading contender for 2020 prospect of the year. “…. Whenever he fights, he delivers,” Top Rank chairman Bob Arum said.

Collard (8-2-3, 3 KOs) is 4-0 thus far in 2020, a streak that includes a trio of victories over previously unbeaten prospects. Collard last appeared on July 14, where he earned a second-round TKO win over Lorawnt T Nelson. Williams (7-1, 3 KOs) is currently on a five-fight winning streak.

“I just look at this as another fight. Nothing’s really changed other than the attention I’m getting," Collard said. "I’m loving all of this. I’m just training and getting ready to do what I love.

  “I didn’t know how I’d like fighting without fans and being quarantined, but I enjoy fighting for Top Rank in the 'Bubble.' I’m just blessed to be part of this experience.”

Collard, who began his pro boxing career in 2017, owns an 18-8 mark with one no contest in professional MMA. That includes a 1-3 stint in the UFC, where he notably fell to former featherweight king Max Holloway via TKO in his Octagon debut.