Pedro Munhoz vs. Jimmie Rivera rematch moved to UFC 258

An intriguing bantamweight rematch between top-10 ranked fighters Pedro Munhoz and Jimmie Rivera has been moved to UFC 258.

Munhoz and Rivera were previously slated to hook up on Fight Island on the January 20 card that’s headlined by Michael Chiesa and Neil Magny. The fight has now been moved to UFC 258, which takes place on February 13. That event is likely going to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. There was no immediate reason for why the fight was moved. MMAFighting.com was the first to report Munhoz vs. Rivera will be at UFC 258.

Munhoz and Rivera previously locked horns at UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Henderson 3 in November 2015 in Brazil. Rivera won a unanimous decision in that fight, but in the years since then, Munhoz has jumped by him in the rankings. Heading into this bout, Munhoz is the No. 8 ranked bantamweight in the UFC, while Rivera is ranked at No. 9, so it’s solid matchmaking.

Munhoz (18-5, 1 NC) is coming off of a controversial split decision loss to Frankie Edgar on Fight Island last summer. The 34-year-old Brazilian lost to Aljamain Sterling his fight before that, so he’s on a two-fight losing skid entering this rematch with Rivera. Despite the two losses, Munhoz is still an extremely dangerous fighter at 135lbs. In his last victory at UFC 235 in March 2019, Munhoz KO’d former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt.

Rivera (23-4) is coming off of a decision win over Cody Stamann on Fight Island in his last bout. The 31-year-old American needed that victory badly as it snapped a two-fight losing skid for the veteran, albeit against the aforementioned Sterling and the current champion Petr Yan. Rivera has proven to be a tough out over the years and he showed in his fight against Yan he can hang with the best of the world. A win over Munhoz would do him wonders.

Who do you think wins at UFC 258, Pedro Munhoz or Jimmie Rivera?