James Vick finally gets Austin booking, meets Francisco Trinaldo at UFC Fight Night 126

It won’t come against an opponent as highly ranked as he wanted, but James Vick will get his home-game opportunity at UFC Fight Night 126.

Vick (12-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC) will meet fellow lightweight Francisco Trinaldo (22-4 MMA, 12-4 UFC) at the February event, the UFC announced. Also set for the card is another 155-pound clash between the returning Diego Ferreira (12-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) and Jared Gordon (14-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC).

UFC Fight Night 126 takes place Feb. 18 at Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas. The event airs on FS1 following early prelims on UFC Fight Pass.

Following his knockout of Joseph Duffy at UFC 217 in November, Vick called for a matchup against a big name or former champion of the weight class for a main-event showdown in his home state. He targeted nearly everyone but couldn’t get a willing dance partner. “The Texecutioner” has won his past three fights and has just one blemish on his professional career, a first-round knockout loss to Beneil Dariush at UFC 199.

Trinaldo also has been thriving of late. The 39-year-old Brazilian has won eight of his past nine UFC fights, only falling short to interim lightweight title competitor Kevin Lee at UFC Fight Night 106 last March during the past four years.

Ferreira returns to action for the first time since January 2016 after receiving a 17-month suspension stemming from an anti-doping violation. He meets Gordon, who’s had a quick start to his UFC tenure with wins over Hacran Dias and Michel Quinones.

The UFC Fight Night 126 card now includes:

• Donald Cerrone vs. Yancy Medeiros
• Derrick Lewis vs. Marcin Tybura
• Ray Borg vs. Brandon Moreno
• Sage Northcutt vs. Thibault Gouti
• Tonya Evinger vs. Marion Reneau
• Brian Camozzi vs. Geoff Neal
• Jessica Aguilar vs. Livia Renata Souza
• Joby Sanchez vs. Roberto Sanchez
• Sarah Moras vs. Lucie Pudilova
• Francisco Trinaldo vs. James Vick
• Diego Ferreira vs. Jared Gordon

For more on UFC Fight Night 126, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.