Bryan Barberena draws second-straight world champion in Rafael dos Anjos at UFC on ESPN 42
UFC on ESPN 42 has surely come along quite nicely, as the Ultimate Fighting Championship has nearly completed the match bookings for said event.
UFC on ESPN 42 is to go down on December 3, 2022, live from the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida, and is to be headlined by a pair of welterweight contenders in two-time title challenger, no. 7 ranked Stephen Thompson, who faces the 2020 Breakthrough Fighter of the Year Kevin Holland in the five-round main event of the evening.
The event also hosts a heavyweight clash between no. 4 ranked Tai Tuivasa and no. 5 ranked Sergei Pavlovich, as well as a middleweight affair between no. 5 ranked Derek Brunson and no. 8 ranked Jack Hermansson.
Another exciting clash that’s recently been added to the card comes in the welterweight division between former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos and Bryan Barberena.
This is a very intriguing bout, and it showcases the former champion moving back up to 170 lbs after a 2-1 stint back down at lightweight. This showed him victorious over Paul Felder (SD) and Renato Moicano (UD), while losing his most recent bout to Rafael Fiziev (TKO).
Barberena has done very well for himself lately as well, as he comes into the bout on a three-fight win streak over the likes of Darian Weeks (UD), Matt Brown (SD), and former UFC welterweight champion Robbie Lawler (TKO), someone dos Anjos also boasts a win over.
Dos Anjos comes into the bout having claimed three Fight of the Night honors, as well as five Performance of the Nights, while Barberena comes in having won Fight of the Night honors in three of his last four bouts, and four of his last seven (five total).
This is going to be a good one!
Does Barberena claim a second-straight victory over another world champion, or does the experience of dos Anjos get him back to his winning ways?
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