Featherweight Champion Max Holloway To Defend World Title Against Former Two-Time World Champion Jose Aldo At Little Caesars Arena Saturday, December 2
(DETROIT) – UFC® will make its first appearance in Detroit in more than 20 years with the 145-pound world title on the line when Max Holloway makes his first walk as champion in a rematch against former two-time champion and No. 1 ranked contender Jose Aldo in the main event of UFC® 218: HOLLOWAY vs ALDO 2. Setting the stage for the main event will be three bouts with title implications as No. 1 ranked Alistair Overeem and No. 4 Francis Ngannou clash in a heavyweight tilt, No. 2 flyweight Henry Cejudo goes head-to-head with the red-hot No. 4 Sergio Pettis and top contenders No. 3 Eddie Alvarez and No. 5 Justin Gaethje try to position themselves in the lightweight division. The event takes place Saturday, Dec. 2 at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit and will air live on Pay-Per-View.
Tickets ($50, $75, $100, $125, $175 and $250, not including applicable service charges and handling fees) are currently on sale and can be purchased at 313Presents.com, The Fox Theatre and Little Caesars Arena XFINITY box offices and Ticketmaster.com. To charge tickets by phone, call (800) 745-3000.
Featherweight champion Holloway (18-3, fighting out of Waianae, Hawaii) intends to prove his win over Aldo (26-3, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) was no fluke, and that he is the true king of the featherweight division. For Holloway to claim his place as a pound-for-pound great, he will again have to go through one of the greatest featherweights in mixed martial arts history. Aldo previously held his belt for more than five years with nine title defenses, and has his sights set on reclaiming his belt and his status as one of the top fighters in the UFC.
In the co-main event, top-ranked Overeem (43-15, 1 NC, fighting out of Amsterdam, The Netherlands) looks to earn another crack at the heavyweight title with an impressive performance against budding phenom Ngannou (10-1, fighting of Paris, France). Overeem is one of the best heavyweights in MMA history and has been a champion in almost every promotion he has competed in, with only the UFC title eluding him. Overeem has finished 38 of his 43 wins, 21 by knockout and 17 by way of submission, proving that he is versatile and capable of ending the fight wherever it goes. On the other side, Ngannou is a knockout artist who possesses the one-punch power that makes him one of the most feared competitors in MMA today. With his meteoric rise, a win over someone with the credentials of Overeem would make it nearly impossible to deny Ngannou a shot at current champion Stipe Miocic.
Additionally, the main card will feature a thrilling flyweight bout when the hard-hitting Cejudo (11-2, fighting out of Phoenix, Ariz.) clashes with the rising star Pettis (16-2, fighting out of Milwaukee, Wisc.). With both men eyeing a title shot, this fight has major implications for a clash with the pound-for-pound champion, Demetrious Johnson. Only 16 of the 31 combined bouts fought by Cejudo and Pettis have gone the distance, so fans can expect an electric 15-minute shootout. The Olympic gold medalist Cejudo is coming off an exciting knockout victory over Wilson Reis and is eyeing a title rematch. Pettis has competed in nine UFC bouts before the age of 24, and is riding a four-fight win streak. The brother of former lightweight champion Anthony Pettis, Sergio is just a win or two away from his own title shot.
An electrifying lightweight matchup between the coaches of this season of The Ultimate Fighter®, Alvarez (28-5, 1 NC, fighting out of Philadelphia, Penn.) and Gaethje (18-0, fighting out of Arvada, Colo.) will also be featured on the main card. The two strikers have combined for 37 finishes, 31 by way of knockout and 20 in the first round. Alvarez is a former UFC champion who hopes a win over the undefeated Gaethje will propel him back into title contention. Gaethje is coming off a Fight of the Year candidate performance against perennial contender Michael Johnson in his promotional debut and knows a win over a recent champion will confirm that he is knocking on the door of a shot at the 155-pound crown.
Additional bouts:
• Rising star No. 5 Tecia Torres (9-1, fighting out of Coconut Creek, Fla.) takes on the hard-hitting No. 6 Michelle Waterson (14-5, fighting out of Albuquerque, N.M.) for possible title implications.
• The Ultimate Fighter season 15 finalist No. 10 Al Iaquinta (13-3-1, fighting out of Wantagh, N.Y.) and Paul Felder (14-3, fighting out of Philadelphia, Penn.) go head-to-head in a lightweight crusade.
• One of Brazil's best No. 15 Alex Oliveira battles the three-time Performance of the Night earner and Hawaii native Yancy Medeiros (14-4, 1NC, Fighting out of Makaha, Hawaii) in a welterweight showdown.
• Michigan native Drakkar Klose (8-0-1, fighting out of Glendale, Ariz.) returns home to meet Swedish striker David Teymur (6-1, fighting out of Stockholm, Sweden) in a lightweight duel.
• Knockout artists Sabah Homasi (11-6, fighting out of Coconut Creek, Fla.) and Abdul Razak Alhassan (7-1, fighting out of Fort Worth, Tex.) go toe-to-toe in a welterweight shootout.
• In a battle of high ranked strawweights, No. 9 Felice Herrig (13-6, fighting out of Crystal Lake, Ill.) and No. 12 Cortney Casey (7-4, fighting out of Maui, Hawaii) look to take one step closer to title contention.
• Michigan's own Amanda Cooper (3-3, fighting out of Bath, Mich.) takes on fellow The Ultimate Fighter alum Angela Magana (11-8, fighting out of Phuket, Thailand) at 115-pounds.
• Light heavyweight power puncher Jeremy Kimball (15-6, fighting out of Colorado Springs, Colo.) meets undefeated striking sensation Dominic Reyes (7-0, fighting out of Victorville, Calif.).
• Heavyweight brawler Justin Willis (5-1, fighting out of San Jose, Calif.) takes on Tuesday Night Contender Series contract earner Allen Crowder (9-2, 1NC, fighting out of Mebane, N.C.) in his UFC debut.
For the latest information on additional bouts for this event, please visit www.ufc.com. All bouts live and subject to change.
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UFC® 218: HOLLOWAY vs ALDO 2 will air live on PPV at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT on Saturday, Dec. 2, with the prelims kicking off the evening on FS1 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT and on UFC FIGHT PASS® at 6:15 p.m. ET/3:15 p.m. PT.
