A bantamweight bout is the latest edition to the UFC’s February return to New Mexico.
Former flyweight title challenger Ray Borg (12-4 MMA, 6-4 UFC) is set to take on Rogerio Bontorin (16-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) when the UFC sets up shop in Rio Rancho, N.M., a person with knowledge of the booking told MMA Junkie. The person requested anonymity because the UFC hasn’t made a formal announcement. News of the fight first was reported on Twitter by Jorge Hernandez.
The UFC’s Rio Rancho event, likely to be a “Fight Night,” takes place Feb. 15 at Santa Ana Star Center. The card is likely to stream on ESPN+.
Borg got back in the win column in July with a unanimous decision victory over Gabriel Silva at UFC on ESPN 4. In February, he dropped a decision to Casey Kenney at UFC on ESPN 2 in a fight that saw him move up from flyweight to bantamweight – though he missed weight for the bout. That fight was his return after nearly 18 months away following his loss to then-flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson in a UFC 216 title fight.
Bontorin earned his way into the UFC with a submission win over Gustavo Gabriel in a Dana White’s Contender Series fight in 2018. When he got his official promotional debut at UFC on ESPN+ 2 in February, he took a split call from Magomed Bibulatov. He followed that up in August with a first-round TKO of Raulian Paiva at UFC on ESPN+ 14.
