The lightweight division’s most anticipated rematch is finally official.
Former champ Eddie Alvarez will face No. 4-ranked Dustin Poirier at July 28’s UFC on FOX 30 from the Scotiabank Centre in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, according to a report from MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani. ESPN’s Brett Okamoto was the first to report the bout.
Alvarez tweeted that the fight was official today, but was rebuffed by Poirier’s claim that there was “1,000 percent” no fight. Apparently, that turned around rather fast, and the two archrivals will meet on a rapidly expanding UFC on FOX event that looks like one of the best of the summer so far.
After accusing Alvarez of refusing to agree to the bout multiple times, ‘The Diamond’ had set his own deadline of May 4, but the UFC was apparently able to talk him into the match-up.
The two rivals threw down in an exciting, back-and-forth war at last May’s UFC 211, with Poirier gaining the early edge before Alvarez came storming back to hurt “The Diamond.” The fight then came to an anticlimactic end when the former UFC and Bellator champion hit a downed Poirier with an illegal knee that referee Herb Dean somehow deemed inadvertent, causing the fight to result in a no contest.
Since then, both fighters have fought and beaten fan-favorite slugger Justin Gaethje in two rousing, brutal slugfests, putting their paths on a collision course once again. With the fight’s addition, UFC on FOX 30’s lineup now features three high-profile match-ups with championship implications in Alvarez vs. Poirier, Jose Aldo vs. Jeremy Stephens, and Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Tecia Torres.
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