The UFC’s traditional Super Bowl weekend event—typically held in Las Vegas but headed to New Jersey this year to coincide with broadcast partner Fox’s coverage of the big game—has a main event.
And a co-main event.
Featherweight champion Jose Aldo will defend his belt against top contender Ricardo Lamas in the main event, while bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz returns from a long injury layoff to face interim champion Renan Barao.
Newsday first reported the story. UFC officials have since confirmed the news.
Lamas, undefeated since moving to the UFC, is riding a four-fight winning streak. He’s currently ranked No. 2 behind Chad Mendes in the featherweight rankings, but Mendes already lost to Aldo and will likely need one more win before securing a rematch. Aldo, meanwhile, is undefeated since 2006 and has held the UFC featherweight championship since being named the champion upon the closure of World Extreme Cagefighting.
Cruz, 28, has not competed since October 2011 and has undergone multiple surgeries, mostly to fix issues with his knees, in the interim. During his time on the shelf, Barao captured the interim bantamweight championship by defeating Urijah Faber and has defended it twice.
UFC 169 takes place Feb. 1, 2014 at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. A heavyweight bout between former UFC champion Frank Mir and Strikeforce champion Alistair Overeem is also slated for the event.
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