The featherweight division is has gotten plenty good over the years and there are several current top fighters that display why.
Multiple of those fighters will be competing on December 8 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
MMA Brasil has reported that a second high caliber 145-pound matchup is now in the works for UFC 231 as rising contender Renato “Moicano” Carneiro (13-1-1) is expected to face former two-time title challenger Chad “Money” Mendes (18-4).
The Team Alpha Male staple Mendes just recently returned from a nearly three-year absence from the Octagon after being handed a two-year suspension from USADA. In his return, he picked up right where he left off as he scored an impressive first-round TKO over Myles Jury at UFC Boise in July.
While Mendes has been away, new blood has been flowing its way through the division and a part of that movement has been the near-perfect Moicano.
To be exact, Moicano has fought five times since Mendes fight prior to his return and has gone 4-1 in doing so with his only loss coming to the upcoming title challenger who will be in the event’s headliner, Brian “T-City” Ortega.
Moicano’s four wins came over the likes of Zubaira Tukhugov, Calvin Kattar, Jeremy Stephens and most recently a first-round submission of Cub Swanson at UFC 227 in August.
As for the rest of the excellent looking card, it currently looks like this:
FEATHERWEIGHT – 145LBS: (C)MAX HOLLOWAY VS. BRIAN ORTEGA
FLYWEIGHT – 125LBS: (C) – VALENTINA SHEVCHENKO VS. JOANNA JEDRZEJCZYK
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT – 205LBS: JIMI MANUWA VS. THIAGO SANTOS
STRAWWEIGHT – 115LBS: CLÁUDIA GADELHA VS. NINA ANSAROFF
MIDDLEWEIGHT – 185LBS: ERYK ANDERS VS. ELIAS THEODOROU
LIGHTWEIGHT – 155LBS: OLIVIER AUBIN-MERCIER VS. GILBERT BURNS
Flyweight: Katlyn Chookagian vs Jessica Eye
BANTAMWEIGHT – 135LBS: BRAD KATONA VS. MATTHEW LOPEZ
WELTERWEIGHT – 170LBS: CHAD LAPRISE VS. DHIEGO LIMA
LIGHTWEIGHT: JOHN MAKDESSI VS. CARLOS DIEGO FERREIRA
FEATHERWEIGHT: HAKEEM DAWODU VS. KYLE BOCHNIAK
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT: DEVIN CLARK VS. ALEKSANDAR RAKIĆ
This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 10/15/2018