Paul Felder vs Edson Barboza 2 targeted for UFC 242

By Mike Pendleton - July 4, 2019

A fight featuring a pair of top lightweight contenders is reportedly headed to Abu Dhabi on the same night the title is on the line. MMA Junkie was first to report that a rematch between Paul Felder and Edson Barboza is being targeted for UFC 242.

Paul Felder

This will be a rematch between Felder and Barboza from their 2015 fight which saw Barboza come out victorious by unanimous decision. Currently, Felder is ranked 10th in the division while Barboza is ranked 7th, meaning this fight likely doesn’t have title implications, but will be an important one for both fighters looking to get into the lightweight title picture.

Paul Felder has won four out of his last five fights, with his only loss coming by a split decision to Mike Perry in a welterweight fight back at UFC 226. Earlier this year, Felder made his return to the lightweight division with an unanimous decision victory over James Vick, a fight in which Felder suffered a collapsed lung.

This will be the first time Edson Barboza has fought since suffering a first-round knockout loss to Justin Gaethje back in March earlier this year. Barboza has lost three of his last four fights but has faced current champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, Kevin Lee, and Gaethje in those fights he has suffered losses in. Barboza’s most recent victory came against Dan Hooker back in December of 2018 at UFC Milwaukee.

With Nurmagomedov set to defend his title at UFC 242, UFC President Dana White recently said that he could see a scenario in which Nurmagomedov’s bitter rival, former champion Conor McGregor make an appearance in Abu Dhabi for the title fight. Following White’s comments, Nurmagomedov issued a warning to his former opponent about possibly showing up to Abu Dhabi.

Who are you taking to win in the rematch between Paul Felder and Edson Barboza?

on 7/4/2019


Topics:

Edson Barboza Paul Felder UFC 242