With Islam Makhachev out, Paul Felder has agreed to face Rafael dos Anjos in a five round main event fight this Saturday night at UFC Vegas 14.
UFC officials confirmed the matchup to MMA Fighting following an initial report from ESPN.
Felder accepts the fight on just five days’ notice after Makhachev was forced to withdraw from the main event clash in Las Vegas.
After initially hinting at a possible retirement following a razor-close split decision loss to Dan Hooker in his previous outing, Felder opted to press forward with his career, but he hadn’t been booked since that fight in February. Overall, Felder is 2-1 in his past three fights including wins over Edson Barboza and James Vick.
Lately, Felder has been a mainstay on UFC broadcasts working as a color commentator and analyst, but now, he’ll climb back into the octagon to face off with a former lightweight champion.
Dos Anjos makes his return to 155 pounds after leaving the division to pursue fights at welterweight for the past few years. The Brazilian won the lightweight title in 2015.
The ex-champ and UFC commentator/fighter exchanged pleasantries after the promotion confirmed the bout with a new poster.