Jon Jones and Quinton Jackson have verbally agreed to square off at UFC 135 in September with Jones’ UFC light-heavyweight championship on the line.
The UFC confirmed that the two stars will meet at the event, which will be held at the Pepsi Center in Denver.
Jones had originally been expected to face Rashad Evans in August until deciding against participation after a flareup of a previously existing hand injury. Evans decided not to wait for Jones, instead opting for a fight with Phil Davis at UFC 133.
Later, doctors told Jones that he would not need surgery for the injury, but would need some time off, making him eligible to fight at the Denver card on September 24. Jones won the title in March with a third-round TKO of Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.
Jackson, meanwhile, punched his ticket to a title match with a three-round unanimous decision win over Matt Hamill in the main event of UFC 130. With the win, Jackson improved to 32-8. He was a onetime light-heavyweight champ, winning the belt in May 2007 with a knockout of Chuck Liddell. He successfully defended it once before losing in a close decision to Forrest Griffin.
Jones is 13-1 with his only loss coming via a controversial disqualification.
Other bouts that have been verbally agreed to for UFC 135 include Matt Hughes vs. Diego Sanchez, Kid Yamamoto vs. Damacio Page, and Mark Hunt vs. Ben Rothwell.