Rafael dos Anjos Defends UFC Lightweight Title from Eddie Alvarez on Fight Pass

Two days before Nate Diaz and Conor McGregor top UFC 200, and a single day prior to Joanna Jedrzejczyk’s next strawweight title defense, UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos will put his belt on the line against Eddie Alvarez. The kicker? He will do it in the headliner of the Fight Pass exclusive UFC Fight Night 90.

Putting dos Anjos’ next title defense at the top of a Fight Pass broadcast is the latest in several significant efforts by the UFC to build its subscription only digital service, and shows how much importance the UFC is placing on the service, as cord-cutting becomes the new norm in television.

The champ, dos Anjos (25-7), is currently on a five-fight winning streak, which includes taking the belt from Anthony Pettis in March of last year and then defending it against Donald Cerrone in December. He was originally slated to put his belt on the line against Conor McGregor at UFC 196 in a champion vs. champion superfight, but that fell through when dos Anjos suffered a broken foot.

McGregor went on to lose to Nate Diaz in a welterweight non-title bout at UFC 196, and now he wants to avenge the loss. So instead of remaking the dos Anjos vs. McGregor fight, the UFC chose to allow McGregor a rematch with Diaz at the top of the UFC 200 bill, and dos Anjos tops the UFC Fight Night card.

Alvarez (27-4) is a former Bellator champion that many have long considered one of the top five lightweights in the world, even when he was fighting outside of the UFC. Expected to make an immediate splash in the Octagon, it took Alvarez a little time to get his feet under him.

He lost a decision to Cerrone in his UFC debut, but rebounded with split-decision victories over Gilbert Melendez and Pettis. With Cerrone losing in his bid for the title, the McGregor fight falling apart, and undefeated contender Khabib Nurmagomedov on the sidelines for the past couple of years, Alvarez will finally get his shot at the belt.

UFC Fight Night 90 takes place on Thursday, July 7, in Las Vegas. The TUF 23 Finale is on Friday, July 8, and UFC 200 on Saturday, July 9, both of which are also in Las Vegas. It’s a triple bill, mimicking the blockbuster International Fight Week the UFC was so successful with in 2015.

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