Yahoo Sports Urijah Faber and Max Holloway Return at UFC 194
The UFC added two pivotal bouts to the UFC 194 fight card slated for Dec. 12 in Las Vegas, with Urijah Faber returning to bantamweight to face streaking Frankie Saenz, and Top 10 featherweights Max Holloway and Jeremy Stephens fighting to take that next step towards title contention.
The UFC announced the two bouts Thursday night via Fox Sports Live.
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Faber (32-8) enters the bout coming off of a loss to Frankie Edgar in a fight that saw the former WEC champion return to 145 pounds for one night. After that loss, Faber agreed to a coaching stint on the twenty-second season of The Ultimate Fighter opposite current UFC interim featherweight champion Conor McGregor.
It'll be a stern test for Saenz, who is currently 11-2 and riding a seven-fight winning streak into the bout. He's never faced anyone as seasoned as Faber, however, and enters the fight winning a split decision over Sirwan Kakai in early August.
Having won his eight most recent bouts, Holloway (14-3) had been angling for a fight with Edgar, but instead draws Stephens, who is no slouch himself. Currently ranked No. 5 in the featherweight division, Holloway is trying to plant himself in the title picture. Adding Stephens to a string of wins that already includes the likes of Charles Oliveira, Cub Swanson, and Cole Miller would certainly help make his case.
Stephens (24-11) ended a two-fight skid over the summer by scoring a TKO stoppage of Dennis Bermudez at UFC 189. He'll try to continue the rebound against Holloway, but the Hawaiian has momentum on his side. Stephens is the No. 8 ranked featherweight, and a win over Holloway would give a huge boost to his stock.
UFC 194 is headlined by the featherweight unification bout between champion Jose Aldo and interim titleholder Conor McGregor, with a co-main event featuring Chris Weidman putting his middleweight belt on the line against Luke Rockhold.
