Max Holloway vs Brian Ortega Dec 8

UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway will put his 145-pound title on the line against Brian Ortega at UFC 231 in December.

This report also supports the impeding fight Ortega had been teasing on Twitter last month.

Holloway and Ortega were originally scheduled to fight in the co-main event of UFC 226 in July before a medical scare forced the champion out of the bout just days before the event. After meeting with his team, Ortega turned down a late replacement fight against Jeremy Stephens in hopes of facing Holloway at a later date.

Holloway (19-3) won the promotion’s featherweight crown with a third-round TKO over longtime champion Jose Aldo at UFC 212 in June 2017, unifying the interim and undisputed belts in the process. “Blessed” later steamrolled through Aldo in their rematch at UFC 218 in December 2017.

The 26-year-old was slated to step in for the injured Tony Ferguson against Khabib Nurmagomedov in a lightweight title fight at UFC 223 before the New York State Athletic Commission determined he was medically unfit to fight.

Ortega (14-0) earned his initial shot at Holloway’s belt after finishing former lightweight champion turned featherweight contender Frankie Edgar at UFC 222 in March. Prior to this, the 27-year-old rattled off a UFC record four straight third-round stoppage wins, including a knockout over Clay Guida and a submission victory over Cub Swanson.

Fights will go down on Dec. 8 inside the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.