Ferguson to face Oliveira at UFC 256
Top lightweights Tony Ferguson and Charles Oliveira will fight at UFC 256 on Dec. 12, UFC president Dana White told ESPN's Brett Okamoto.
Ferguson had previously called for a bout with Michael Chandler, but the former Bellator champion rebuffed the offer, saying he would only accept the fight if it's on the Conor McGregor-Dustin Poirier card in January.
The ex-interim lightweight champion confirmed White's announcement shortly after on Twitter:
“We don’t wait, we call the shots. Line them up.” Chief Security Officer of the UFC. See you Dec 12 Crew ⚔️🕶 Champ Shit Only™️ 🇺🇸🏆🇲🇽 # DarceKnightRises @ufc @danawhite pic.twitter.com/ddJxBhIWbe
— Tony Ferguson (@TonyFergusonXT) November 21, 2020
UFC 256, the promotion's final pay-per-view of 2020, desperately needed bolstering after double champion Amanda Nunes dropped out of her main-event fight against Megan Anderson.
Bantamweight champion Petr Yan's first title defense against Aljamain Sterling was bumped up to the main event. The newly booked lightweight clash will presumably act as the co-main event.
Ferguson is looking to rebound after Justin Gaethje snapped his 12-fight win streak in May.
Meanwhile, Oliveira is riding a seven-fight win streak. He recently cemented his place among the top contenders at 155 pounds with a submission of Kevin Lee in March.
UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov reiterated his desire to stay retired Friday despite White pushing for his return, and the promotion has yet to vacate his title. White said the belt won't be up for grabs in the McGregor-Poirier fight, so the winner of Ferguson-Oliveira could be in line for a title shot.