Rafael Dos Anjos will defend his UFC lightweight title July 7 when he faces Eddie Alvarez on UFC Fight Pass.
There is a lot of interesting information packed into that sentence.
UFC officials announced the bout Friday morning through the UFC Fight Pass Twitter account:
At first glance, the news is noteworthy because it means a return to action for Dos Anjos, who has won five straight but has been out of action since December with a foot injury. That injury forced him to withdraw from the main event of UFC 196, where he was on a collision course with featherweight champ Conor McGregor.
Now, instead of headlining a pay-per-view against arguably the most famous MMA fighter alive, Dos Anjos (25-7) now must settle for a main event on Fight Pass, the UFC’s subscription streaming service.
The announcement is the latest in a string of noticeably stronger offerings for Fight Pass subscribers, but that knowledge probably doesn’t do much to assuage Dos Anjos, who, one imagines, can’t help but feel at least a tiny bit wistful over missing his date with McGregor, only to receive this match in return.
That’s especially true when considering Alvarez (27-4) is no one’s easy out. The longtime Bellator lightweight champion sat out years of his prime thanks to protracted contract difficulties with Bellator and the UFC, but he is 2-1 since debuting in the Octagon in 2014. He lost his debut to Donald Cerrone but has since earned victories over Gilbert Melendez and Anthony Pettis.
This bout announcement also means the UFC will now hold title fights on three consecutive days. Joanna Jedrzejczyk defends her strawweight title against Claudia Gadelha on July 8, and Amanda Nunes challenges Miesha Tate for the women’s bantamweight title at the blockbuster UFC 200 card on July 9.
So far, there is no word from the UFC about what else might appear on the July 7 card alongside Dos Anjos and Alvarez.
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