UFC 164 lineup finalized as Poirier vs. Koch secures final PPV slot

The fight card is set for next month’s UFC 164 event, and an intriguing featherweight bout between Dustin Poirier (13-3 MMA, 5-2 UFC) and Erik Koch (13-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) has secured the final main-card spot and will kick off the night’s pay-per-view main card.

UFC 164 takes place Aug. 31 at Bradley Center in Milwaukee. In addition to the PPV lineup, prelims air on FX and stream on Facebook.

The event features a championship headliner and rematch between UFC lightweight titleholder Benson Henderson (19-2 MMA, 7-0 UFC) and injury replacement Anthony Pettis (16-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC). The latter, who replaced injured T.J. Grant, won the duo’s initial meeting in 2010 at the WEC’s final event. Pettis then went down in history as the WEC’s final lightweight champion.

Koch and Poirier, meanwhile, are ranked No. 11 and No. 15, respectively, in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie.com MMA featherweight rankings. Both contenders were on solid runs before recent losses, and their long-awaited meeting – which initially was scheduled for early 2012 – now kicks off UFC 164's main card,

The full UFC 164 card includes:

MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)

• Benson Henderson vs. Anthony Pettis – for UFC lightweight title
• Josh Barnett vs. Frank Mir
• Clay Guida vs. Chad Mendes
• Ben Rothwell vs. Brandon Vera
• Erik Koch vs. Dustin Poirier

PRELIMINARY CARD (FX, 8 p.m. ET)

• Gleison Tibau vs. Jamie Varner
• Tim Elliott vs. Louis Gaudinot
• Pascal Krauss vs. Hyun Gyu Lim
• Chico Camus vs. Kyung Ho Kang

PRELIMINARY CARD (Facebook, 6 p.m. ET)

• Derek Brunson vs. Yoel Romero
• Nikita Krylov vs. Soa Palelei
• Ryan Couture vs. Al Iaquinta
• Magnus Cedenblad vs. Jared Hamman

For more on UFC 164, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.

(Pictured: Erik Koch)