With 13th bout, 'UFC 218: Holloway vs. Edgar' lineup finalized

With a final addition to the fight card, the lineup is set for next month’s UFC 218 event.

UFC 218 takes place Dec. 2 at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, and it’s the UFC’s first event in Michigan since UFC 123 in 2010. The main card airs live on pay-per-view following prelims on FS1 and UFC Fight Pass.

A heavyweight bout between Allen Crowder (7-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC) and Justin Willis (5-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) is the latest addition to the card and serves as the curtain-jerker.

Crowder, a 27-year-old from North Carolina, picked up a UFC contract after a third-round TKO win over Don’Tale Mayes at DWCS 8. It marked his second straight victory and his sixth stoppage in seven career wins. He now meets Willis, a 30-year-old American Kickboxing Academy member who made his UFC debut in July and scored a decision victory over James Mulheron. It was his fifth straight victory.

In the main event, featherweight champion Max Holloway (18-3 MMA, 14-3 UFC), who’s No. 1 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA 145-pound rankings (and No. 8 pound-for-pound), looks to defend his title for the first time when he meets former lightweight champ and perennial contender Frankie Edgar (22-5-1 MMA, 16-5-1 UFC), who’s ranked No. 3.

The co-main event could serve as a title-eliminator as No. 2-ranked Alistair Overeem (43-15 MMA, 8-4 UFC) takes on No. 9 Francis Ngannou (10-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) in a battle of heavyweight strikers.

Rounding out the main card are No. 3 flyweight Henry Cejudo (11-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) vs. No. 6 Sergio Pettis (16-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC), No. 3-ranked lightweight Justin Gaethje (18-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) vs. former champ and No. 5 Eddie Alvarez (28-5 MMA, 3-2 UFC), and No. 7 strawweight Tecia Torres (9-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) vs. honorable mention Michelle Waterson (14-5 MMA, 2-1 UFC).

The featured prelim boasts Paul Felder (14-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) vs. Charles Oliveira (22-7 MMA, 10-7 UFC). As MMAjunkie reported on Tuesday, Oliveira replaced injured Al Iaquinta (13-3-1 MMA, 8-2 UFC), who’s ranked No. 14 at lightweight.

The full “UFC 218: Holloway vs. Edgar” card now includes:

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

• Champ Max Holloway vs. Frankie Edgar – for featherweight title
• Francis Ngannou vs. Alistair Overeem
• Henry Cejudo vs. Sergio Pettis
• Eddie Alvarez vs. Justin Gaethje
• Tecia Torres vs. Michelle Waterson

PRELIMINARY CARD (FS1, 8 p.m. ET)

• Paul Felder vs. Charles Oliveira
• Yancy Medeiros vs. Alex Oliveira
• Drakkar Klose vs. David Teymur
• Cortney Casey vs. Felice Herrig

PRELIMINARY CARD (UFC Fight Pass, 6:15 p.m. ET)

• Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Sabah Homasi
• Jeremy Kimball vs. Dominick Reyes
• Amanda Cooper vs. Angela Magana
• Allen Crowder vs. Justin Willis

For more on UFC 218, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.