A heavyweight matchup between former champion Junior dos Santos and Curtis Blaydes will headline UFC Fight Night on Jan. 25, multiple sources told ESPN.
The five-round bout is not yet officially signed, but both sides have agreed. The UFC Fight Night event will take place at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina, and air on ESPN+.
Dos Santos (21-6) was supposed to face Alexander Volkov last weekend at a UFC Fight Night in Moscow but was forced to withdraw weeks ago due to a severe bacterial infection in his leg. The 35-year-old has since recovered, and he will be looking to build on a 3-1 record in his past four bouts.
Originally from Brazil, now fighting out of Coconut Creek, Florida, dos Santos is coming off a knockout loss to Francis Ngannou in June. Prior to that, he’d defeated Blagoy Ivanov, Tai Tuivasa and Derrick Lewis.
Blaydes (12-2) went 2-0 in two appearances in 2019. The 28-year-old contender is seeking his first UFC title shot, and is an impressive 7-1 in his past eight contests. He fights out of Denver.