UFC on Fox 20 went from empty to absolutely packed with a series of fight announcements on Wednesday night. The headliner? An interesting striker vs. striker matchup between former women's bantamweight champion Holly Holm and surging newcomer Valentina Shevchenko. The news was announced on Fox Sports 1's UFC Tonight.
Holm famously took the UFC title off Ronda Rousey at UFC 193, knocking out the seemingly unstoppable judoka in shocking fashion. While that should have been the birth of a new star for the UFC, the months since have been defined by Holm's UFC 196 loss to Miesha Tate and UFC President Dana White's bitter grudge against Holm's management team.
A really tough striker. Maybe UFC is hoping if they can hang two losses on Holm Rousey will never have to fight her? https://t.co/ZjW97pRlEh
— Jonathan Snowden (@JESnowden) May 5, 2016
The matchup has some speculating that the UFC is actively trying to push Holm away from the title picture ahead of Rousey's potential return. Regardless, this should be an interesting, technical fight between two high-level strikers.
The undercard is, perhaps, even more interesting. The co-main event is a huge light heavyweight bout between Anthony "Rumble" Johnson and Glover Teixeira. The former title contenders are coming off impressive wins over Ryan Bader and Rashad Evans, respectively, and could very well line themselves up for a crack at the winner of UFC 200's Daniel Cormier vs. Jon Jones title fight.
Further down, MMAWeekly.com has reported that Edson Barboza will look to maintain the momentum he gained at UFC 197 by taking on former Strikeforce lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez. It's a pivotal fight for both men, as Barboza finds himself poised to force his way into the title picture while Melendez looks to rebuild his reputation following a failed drug test.
UFC on Fox 20 is set for July 23 in Chicago and will also feature Eddie Wineland vs. Frankie Saenz and Felice Herrig vs. Kailin Curran. If everything holds together, this will be worth watching.
