A battle between surging lightweight contenders is being slated for February.
Multiple people with knowledge of the promotion’s plans confirmed to MMA Fighting that a matchup between Arman Tsarukyan and Joel Alvarez is expected to take place at the UFC’s event on Feb. 26 at a location and venue yet to be announced. TASS was first to report the booking.
Since fighting Islam Makhachev to a decision loss in his octagon debut, Tsarukyan has picked up victories in four straight appearances. The 25-year-old notched unanimous decision wins over Olivier Aubin-Mercier, Davi Ramos, and Matt Frevola before stopping Christos Giagos in the opening round of their UFC Vegas 37 matchup.
The story is quite similar for Alvarez. He dropped his first UFC appearance to Damir Ismagulov before rattling off four straight wins. “El Fenomeno” has earned stoppages in all of his octagon victories, most recently putting away Thiago Moises earlier this month at UFC Vegas 42. Alvarez has also had some issues with the scale, as he missed weight ahead of his last two victories.
The UFC’s Feb. 26 event will be headlined by a pivotal 155-pound bout between Beneil Dariush and Islam Makhachev.
