Today, the UFC officially announced lightweights Edson Barboza (20-6 MMA, 14-6 UFC) and Justin Gaethje (19-2, 2-2 UFC) will main event the promotion’s return to Philadelphia on March 30th.
Barboza vs. Gaethje will headline the event, known as UFC on ESPN 2, in a five-round main event. The event will take place in Philadelphia, PA at the Wells Fargo Center. It will be the promotions first time to hold an event in the host city in nearly 8 years. Tickets for the general public go on sale Feb. 8.
Barboza is coming off a TKO win over Dan Hooker in December, which rebounded him after suffering back-to-back losses to Khabib Nurmagomedov and Kevin Lee. Barboza will be looking to put together back-to-back wins for the first time in two years.
Gaethje hushed the doubters when he ran through James Vick with a KO win back in August. The win allowed him to bounce back after being stopped in back-to-back fights against Eddie Alvarez and Dustin Poirier, which are Gaethje’s only professional losses.
Other fights slated for UFC Philadelphia include:
- Karolina Kowalkiewicz vs. Michelle Waterson (Women’s Strawweight Bout)
- Alexa Grasso vs. Marina (Women’s Strawweight Bout)
Follow me on Twitter @justinbaileyfaa