John Lineker has got himself a bantamweight booking. And, surprisingly enough, it’s not with Bryan Caraway.
Instead, Brazil’s Lineker (29-8 MMA, 10-3 UFC) meets Ecuadorian Marlon Vera (10-3-1 MMA, 4-2 UFC) at UFC Fight Night 119, which takes place on Oct. 28 at Ibirapuera Gymnasium in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
The matchup was first reported by Combate.com and later confirmed by MMAjunkie with Lineker’s camp.
Vera also confirmed it on his Twitter account:
The event airs on FS1 following prelims on UFC Fight Pass, though the full fight card and bout order haven’t been finalized.
The booking comes after weeks of Twitter back-and-forth between Lineker and Caraway. Vera, in turn, has most recently issued callouts to Jimmie Rivera and Brett Johns, but he made his willingness to meet anyone, at any time, abundantly clear.
Lineker hasn’t fought since December 2016, when he dropped a unanimous decision to former champion T.J. Dillashaw. Before that, the heavy-hitter was riding six consecutive wins, including recent ones over Michael McDonald and John Dodson.
While Lineker’s UFC run has been mostly victorious, it’s also been plagued by failures to make weight – multiple times at flyweight and once since he’s moved up to 135. He’s currently ranked No. 9 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA bantamweight rankings.
The unranked Vera, in turn, has been on a quite a roll: He’s currently riding a three-fight winning streak capped off by finishes over Brad Pickett and Brian Kelleher. At 24, the California-based Ecuadorian has been known to hop on short-notice opportunities – even overseas ones.
The latest UFC Fight Night 119 card now includes:
For more on UFC Fight Night 119, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.
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