The biggest featherweight title fight in UFC history has a date once again.
According to UFC President Dana White, UFC champion Jose Aldo will meet interim champion Conor McGregor on Saturday, Dec. 12, in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. The event is expected to serve as UFC 194.
The pair were originally scheduled to meet at UFC 189 in July, following an exhaustive media tour that took the fighters to both Aldo’s native Brazil and McGregor’s Ireland. However, the champion Aldo suffered a rib injury prior to the bout and was forced to pull out at the last-minute. He was replaced by multiple-time title challenger Chad Mendes, whom McGregor defeated by second-round TKO.
Aldo has been out of action since last October when he defeated the aforementioned Mendes via unanimous decision at UFC 179 in Rio de Janeiro. The win marked Aldo’s seventh straight defense of his UFC belt and 10th consecutive title fight win dating back to the WEC. The 28-year-old has never tasted defeat in the UFC and rides an 18-fight winning streak that dates back to 2006.
McGregor, meanwhile, is also unbeaten inside the Octagon. The Irishman will enter the title affair on the momentum of a 14-fight winning streak of his own. Five of his six wins under the UFC banner have come by way of knockout, including his finish of Mendes in July.
UFC 194 will air live on pay-per-view. More details, including an official announcement from the promotion, are expected in the coming months.