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The final two pay-per-view events of 2015 bred two new mega-star champions in the UFC.
Both will fight for the first time since their coups on March 5 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Conor McGregor and Holly Holm will headline UFC 197, the promotion announced Tuesday afternoon to confirm multiple reports from last week.
McGregor, featherweight champion, looks to become the first two-division belt-holder in UFC history in the main event when he moves to lightweight to face champion Rafael dos Anjos. Holm defends her women’s bantamweight championship bout for the first time against fellow Ronda Rousey foe Miesha Tate.
A rematch between Holm and Rousey was expected to anchor July’s UFC 200 at T-Mobile Arena, along with a McGregor bout. Those remain possibilities, but will be at risk depending on what happens at UFC 197.
McGregor has emphasized he isn’t surrendering the featherweight belt he won by knocking out Jose Aldo in 13 seconds at UFC 194 in December, and instead plans to hold titles at two different weight classes concurrently. It’s an arrangement the UFC has never entertained with any other fighter, but McGregor has reached a point where he arguably yields more power than any other champion predecessor.
Holm got her way, too. The former boxing champion said she didn’t want to wait more than half of the year for a rematch with Rousey, whom she defeated via second-round knockout at UFC 193 in November.
UFC President Dana White initially scoffed at Holm getting another fight in the interim, saying he and CEO Lorenzo Fertitta should “probably lose our promoter’s license” if they don’t book her against Rousey. The presence of Tate, who trains locally, changed their opinions.
Tate was supposed to fight Rousey for a third time before Holm unexpectedly leap-frogged her last year. The winner of Holm vs. Tate is expected to earn the next crack at Rousey.
Tickets are scheduled to go on sale Friday Jan. 22.
Case Keefer can be reached at 702-948-2790 or [email protected]. Follow Case on Twitter at twitter.com/casekeefer.
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