Edson Barboza in for Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson at TUF 22 Finale

Edson Barboza

Now that the dust has started to settle from the announcement of Khabib Nurmagomedov’s latest injury, his December opponent now knows his new foe.

With Nurmagomedov (22-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) out of the TUF 22 Finale against Tony Ferguson (19-3 MMA, 9-1 UFC) with a rib injury, Ferguson now will face Edson Barboza (16-3 MMA, 10-3 UFC). UFC officials announced the new pairing today.

The Ultimate Fighter 22 Finale takes place Dec. 11 at The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas. The main card is likely to air on FOX Sports 1 following prelims on that channel and UFC Fight Pass.

Ferguson is No. 10 in the NOS Energy Drink MMA lightweight rankings, while Barboza is No. 13. The injured Nurmagomedov is No. 2.

Barboza is coming off a unanimous decision “Fight of the Night” win over Paul Felder at UFC on FOX 16 in July. That got him back on track after a decision loss to Michael Johnson in February, and he now has won three of his past four fights.

Ferguson has won six straight fights, with four coming by stoppage. He has three fight-night bonuses in that stretch. He was hopeful a win over Nurmagomedov would get him a title shot, given Nurmagomedov’s high ranking. A win over Barboza won’t hold quite the same cache, but would push him to seven straight.

Nurmagomedov has not competed since UFC on FOX 11 in April 2014, when he scored a dominant unanimous decision win over current UFC lightweight titleholder Rafael dos Anjos. The victory extended his undefeated record to 22-0, including six-straight successful trips to the octagon.

“The Eagle” suffered a knee injury that required surgery following the bout with dos Anjos and was scheduled to return to action against Donald Cerrone at UFC 187 in May. Unfortunately, another knee injury struck the 27-year-old and he was forced out of the contest.

With the change, the latest TUF 22 Finale lineup includes:

• Frankie Edgar vs. Chad Mendes
• Edson Barboza vs. Tony Ferguson
• Evan Dunham vs. Joe Lauzon
• Ryan LaFlare vs. Mike Pierce
• Mirsad Bektic vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri
• Joby Sanchez vs. Justin Scoggins
• Konstantin Erokhin vs. Gabriel Gonzaga

For more on The Ultimate Fight 22 Finale, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.