UFC veteran Michael Chiesa will try to hand undefeated welterweight Sean Brady his first loss and rebound from a high-profile setback.
Multiple people with knowledge of the promotion’s plans told MMA Fighting Chiesa and Brady are in the process of finalizing an agreement to fight at a UFC event scheduled for Nov. 20 at a location to be determined. Fight Night events have typically been hosted by the promotion’s UFC APEX in Las Vegas. ESPN.com was first to report the booking.
Chiesa, the No. 9 fighter in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings, is less than one month removed from a submission loss to Vicente Luque, which marked his first setback since moving up to the welterweight division from lightweight. Prior to that, he had won four straight and was considered on the short list for a title shot with a win over Luque, who’s currently ranked No. 6.
In Brady, Chiesa meets an up-and-coming fighter looking to build his case for a title shot with established names. So far, the 28-year-old Brady hasn’t faced marquee opposition, winning four straight including a recent submission of Jake Matthews at UFC 259.
Brady was scheduled to appear against one-time interim lightweight title challenger Kevin Lee at UFC Vegas 35, but a foot infection forced him to withdraw from the event this past Saturday.