Former strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk will return to the 115-pound division for the first time in more than a year when she faces Michelle Waterson at UFC Fight Night on Oct. 12.
Bout agreements have not yet been signed, but both sides have verbally agreed to the matchup, per multiple sources. The strawweight fight will headline UFC Fight Night on ESPN+. The UFC has not yet announced a venue.
Jedrzejczyk (15-3) won the 115-pound championship in 2015 and defended it five consecutive times before suffering a knockout loss to Rose Namajunas in 2017. She lost an immediate rematch to Namajunas in early 2018, but bounced back with a win over Tecia Torres last summer.
Jedrzejczyk moved up to 125 pounds in December to challenge Valentina Shevchenko for the then-vacant flyweight title. Jedrzejczyk lost that bout via unanimous decision, and immediately expressed interest in moving back down to her longtime weight class.
Waterson (17-6) is riding a three-fight win streak. Fighting out of JacksonWink MMA in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the 33-year-old is coming off a decision win against Karolina Kowalkiewicz at UFC Fight Night in March.
The winner of the Oct. 12 matchup would have a strong case for a title shot. Current champion Jessica Andrade, who took the belt from Namajunas in May, is scheduled to defend against Weili Zhang on Aug. 31.