Former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold is officially set to make his 205-pound debut this summer.
Luke Rockhold is officially headed to 205 pounds.
The former UFC middleweight champion is scheduled to meet Jan Blachowicz in a light heavyweight bout at UFC 239, which takes place July 6 in Las Vegas, ESPN’s Brett Okamoto reported Monday.
Rockhold has struggled recently at 185 pounds, prompting his move up in weight. He hasn’t fought since a knockout loss to Yoel Romero in February 2018, a fight that was for the interim title. He was expected to fight Chris Weidman in a rematch at UFC 230 late last year, but he was forced out of the contest due to an injury.
Rockhold, who trains at American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose, won the 185-pound title in December 2015 with a TKO of Weidman. He lost it less than a year later to Michael Bisping in a major upset. He bounced back from that title loss with a submission of David Branch in September 2017.
Blachowicz was on the shortlist of top light heavyweight contenders until he ran into the surging Thiago Santos in the main event of UFC Prague in February. He fell to the Brazilian bruiser via third-round TKO, snapping an impressive four-fight winning streak that included wins over Nikita Krylov, Jimi Manuwa, and Jared Cannonier.
UFC 239, which takes place at T-Mobile Arena, does not yet have a main event. Rockhold vs. Blachowicz is the first fight added to the card.