Toronto, October 13: UFC hits Toronto with a pair of thrilling world title fights, headlined by featherweight champion Max Holloway going for his second defense against undefeated No.1 contender Brian Ortega in UFC 231: Holloway vs. Ortega which takes place on December 8 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada.
Also, in a bout for the vacant women's flyweight championship, former strawweight titleholder Joanna Jedrzejczyk battles No.1-ranked contender Valentina Shevchenko.
Currently riding one of the most impressive win streaks in UFC history, Holloway secured his first successful title defense with a spectacular TKO win over former titleholder Jose Aldo in December. During his run, he's earned victories against former lightweight champ Anthony Pettis, Ricardo Lamas, Jeremy Stephens and Cub Swanson. Holloway aims to continue his dominant ways by dispatching an undefeated title threat.
Winter is coming 🦈 pic.twitter.com/VkJ9fyNVch
— Max Holloway (@BlessedMMA) October 11, 2018
Ortega has been on a tear since joining the UFC in 2014. In his last three outings, he's taken home four Fight Night bonuses, and in March, he became the first fighter to finish former lightweight champ Frankie Edgar. Known for his incredible grappling and evolving striking, he's also finished Cub Swanson, Renato Moicano, Clay Guida and Thiago Tavares. With a UFC title in his sights, Ortega plans to hand Holloway his first loss in more than five years.
Finishing the training strong 💪🏻 #BushiBan #Houston Getting ready to my fight at #UFC231 in #Toronto pic.twitter.com/TpIeSolmCF
— Valentina Shevchenko (@BulletValentina) October 11, 2018
In the co-main event, former kickboxing rivals throw down for UFC gold.
The most dominant strawweight champ in UFC history, Jedrzejczyk focuses her attention on the burgeoning 125-pound division. An aggressive and devastating Muay Thai striker, she's delivered crowd-pleasing victories against Tecia Torres, Jessica Andrade, Karolina Kowalkiewicz and Claudia Gadelha (twice). She's now on the cusp of becoming the first female two-division champion in UFC history.
A former bantamweight title challenger, Shevchenko put the flyweight division on notice with a vicious submission win over Priscila Cachoeira in February. The 17-time world Muay Thai champion also holds spectacular victories against former women's bantamweight champ Holly Holm, Julianna Pena and Sarah Kaufman. She now looks to make good on her second UFC championship opportunity.
So many legendary fights have gone down in Toronto 🇨🇦. The Octagon returns to The Six for #UFC231!
— UFC Canada (@UFC_CA) October 9, 2018
🎟 on-sale this week! pic.twitter.com/ncmeZUSlTH
Additional bouts on the card include:
No.5-ranked light heavyweight contender Jimi Manuwa battles fellow KO artist Thiago Santos.
Strawweight contenders collide when No.3-ranked Claudia Gadelha takes on No.11 Nina Ansaroff.
No.13-ranked Elias Theodorou battles hard-hitting Eryk Anders.
In an exciting lightweight bout, Olivier Aubin-Mercier meets Gilbert Burns.
THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER: UNDEFEATED winner Brad Katona locks horns with Matthew Lopez.
Chad Laprise faces Dhiego Lima in a clash of welterweight strikers.
John Makdessi goes for his third straight victory when he takes on Diego Ferreira.
Hakeem Dawodu aims to keeps momentum rolling against gritty Kyle Bochniak.
Devin Clark looks to turn back surging Aleksandar Rakic.
Source: Press Release