Former strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk is making her return back to 115 pounds to meet Michelle Waterson in the main event of UFC on ESPN+ 19.
Jedrzejczyk and Waterson have verbally agreed to headline the Oct. 12 card, which does not have a set location assigned yet. A person with knowledge of the situation confirmed the news to MMA Junkie following an initial report from ESPN.com on Wednesday. The person requested anonymity because the UFC has yet to make an official announcement.
Jedrzejczyk (15-3 MMA, 9-3 UFC) will return after some time off following a failed attempt at capturing flyweight gold. She lost a unanimous decision to Valentina Shevchenko for the inaugural 125-pound title last December at UFC 231. After an undefeated start to her pro career, capturing the strawweight title and defending it a record five times, Jedrzejczyk is facing her roughest patch yet. She has lost three out of her last four fights and will look to rebound when she faces Waterson.
On the contrary, Waterson (17-6 MMA, 5-2 UFC) is facing her best career stretch, amassing a three-fight winning streak with wins over Cortney Casey, Felice Herrig and Karolina Kowalkiewicz. A win over former champion Jedrzejczyk, could finally earn “The Karate Hottie” her long awaited title shot.
Jedrzejczyk vs. Waterson could stand to serve as a potential title eliminator. Six weeks earlier at UFC on ESPN+ 15, strawweight champion Jessica Andrade will defend her title against Weili Zhang in China.
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