Jeremy Stephens returns to lightweight to face Drakkar Klose on April 17

Jeremy Stephens is making the move back to lightweight.

According to MMAJunkie, Stephens will move up to 155-pounds on April 17 for the first time since 2012 to face Drakkar Klose.

Stephens is currently winless in his last five fights and this could be do-or-die for his career. He has not fought since he suffered a knockout loss to Calvin Kattar at UFC 249. Before that, he lost a decision to Yair Rodriguez and had the no-contest to Rodriguez due to the accidental eye poke. During this losing skid, he also dropped a decision to Zabit Magomedsharipov and a TKO loss to Jose Aldo. In his career, Stephens holds notable wins over Josh Emmett, Renan Barao, Rafael dos Anjos, and Darren Elkins among others.

Drakkar Klose, meanwhile, was supposed to face Luis Pena last weekend but on the day of the event, the fight was canceled due to a positive COVID-19 test. The 32-year-old has not fought since he suffered a KO loss to Beneil Dariush at UFC 248 in a phenomenal fight that Klose nearly finished Dariush. The loss snapped his three-fight winning streak where he beat Christos Giagos, Bobby Green, and Lando Vannata by decision. In his UFC career, Klose is 5-2 and if he can beat Stephens on April 17, it would be one of the biggest wins of his career and push him up to potentially face a ranked opponent next time out.

Currently, the location of the April 17 is uncertain but the main event of the card will see a very intriguing middleweight bout between Paulo Costa and Robert Whittaker. The winner will likely earn a title shot.

The April 17 card is now as follows: