Al Iaquinta meets unbeaten newcomer Kevin Lee at UFC 169 in Newark

A lightweight matchup between an unbeaten prospect and a New Yorker is on tap for the UFC’s return to New Jersey for UFC 169.

Al Iaquinta (7-2-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) will fight close to home when he takes on newly signed Kevin Lee (6-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC). UFC officials announced the new bout on Thursday night.

UFC 169 takes place on Feb. 1 at Prudential Center at Newark, N.J. The evening’s main card airs on pay-per-view while prelims are expected to air on FOX Sports 1. A pair of title fights headline the Super Bowl Saturday card as bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz returns to meet interim champ Renan Barao in a title unification bout, and featherweight champ Jose Aldo defends against Ricardo Lamas.

Iaquinta has won back-to-back fights after dropping his UFC debut, which came following a stint on Season 15 of “The Ultimate Fighter.” He reached the final of that live season of the show, but was stopped by winner Michael Chiesa at the TUF 15 Finale. After that, though, he has wins Ryan Couture and Piotr Hallman. The win over Couture came after more than a year on the sidelines.

Lee comes to the UFC with three straight submission wins after starting his career with three straight decision victories. The Michigan-based lightweight has all three of those tapout wins in 2013.

With the addition to the card, UFC 169 now includes:

• Champ Dominick Cruz vs. interim champ Renan Barao – bantamweight title unification bout
• Champ Jose Aldo vs. Ricardo Lamas – for featherweight title
• Frank Mir vs. Alistair Overeem
• Chris Cariaso vs. Kyoji Horiguchi
• Nick Catone vs. Tom Watson
• John Makdessi vs. Alan Patrick
• Al Iaquinta vs. Kevin Lee

For the latest on UFC 169, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.

(Pictured: Al Iaquinta)