Jake Ellenberger has received a new opponent for his next fight inside the Octagon under the UFC banner.
He was supposed to fight Bryan Barberena at the show, but that fight got axed due to injury.
Now, Ellenberger will now meet Ben Saunders at the UFC Fight Night 131 event (better known as UFC Utica).
The Las Vegas-based promotion announced the welterweight booking between Ellenberger and Saunders on Friday afternoon.
By accepting and agreeing to fight on this date, it marks Ellenberger’s 20th UFC appearance.
Something to note is the fact that this marks Ellenberger’s first fight in over one year as he has not been seen inside of the Octagon since suffering a knockout loss to Mike Perry at UFC Fight Night 108 in April. He’s 2-7 in his past nine fights dating back to July 2013.
On the flip side, Saunders is also trying to snap a bad string of fights as he has lost his past two fights by knockout against Alan Jouban and Peter Sobotta.
UFC Utica is set to take place on June 1, 2018, at Adirondack Bank Center in Utica, New York. The main card will air on FOX Sports 1 at while the preliminary card will be split broadcasted on FOX Sports 1 at and the promotion’s streaming service, UFC Fight Pass.
Marlon Moraes vs. Jimmie Rivera will serve as the headliner of this show. The promotion will be announcing more bouts for this card, which you can see the updated lineup here:
Marlon Moraes vs. Jimmie Rivera
Walt Harris vs. Daniel Spitz
Sijara Eubanks vs. Lauren Murphy
Jarred Brooks vs. Hector Sandoval
Sam Alvey vs. Gian Villante
Gregor Gillespie vs. Vinc Pichel
Jessica Aguilar vs. Jodie Esquibel
Jake Ellenberger vs. Ben Saunders
What are your thoughts on Ellenberger accepting this fight? Is this a right fight for him at the stage of his career right now? Sound off in the comment section below.
