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“Showtime” is going back down to lightweight, where he was once WEC and UFC champion.
Anthony Pettis is returning to the division where he once reigned.
MMA Junkie reported late Monday evening that “Showtime” is set to take on Brazil’s Diego Ferreira on a UFC card planned for January 18th. No official announcement has been made as of this writing.
Pettis (22-9) is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Nate Diaz at UFC 241. He moved up to 170 lbs earlier this year and scored a truly spectacular KO of Stephen Thompson in the UFC Nashville main event. The former WEC and UFC champion is just 4-7 in his last 11 fights, spanning from featherweight to welterweight and beginning with the loss of his lightweight title to Rafael dos Anjos in 2015.
Ferreira (16-2) is quietly on a five-fight winning streak. Since a TKO loss to Dustin Poirier in 2015, Ferreira has since rattled off wins over Olivier Aubin-Mercier, Jared Gordon, Kyle Nelson, Rustam Khabilov, and most recently a very impressive decision over Mairbek Taisumov at UFC 242. Pettis represents the most notable opponent that Ferreira has fought since the Poirier bout, and another victory could lead to bigger matchups down the line.
There’s no word yet on the main event for the UFC’s January 18th show. If it’s a pay-per-view then it’s likely to be headlined by Conor McGregor, otherwise it’s presumably going to be an ESPN or ESPN+ show.