Donald Cerrone (26-6 MMA, 13-3 UFC) wanted to fight again as quickly as possible after his win over Myles Jury at UFC 182. Two weeks seems pretty quick.
UFC President Dana White announced on Instagram that Cerrone has agreed to step in for an injured Eddie Alvarez (25-4 MMA, 0-1 UFC) and will now meet Benson Henderson (21-4 MMA, 9-2 UFC) at next week’s UFC Fight Night 59 event, which takes place on Jan. 18, 2015 at Boston’s TD Garden. The evening’s four-fight main card airs on FOX Sports 1 (10 p.m. ET) following six preliminary bouts on the same channel (7 p.m. ET) and two that stream on UFC Fight Pass (6 p.m. ET).
Cerrone dominated a previously undefeated Jury at this past weekend’s UFC 182 event, but the lack of action left “Cowboy” pressing for a quick return to action. He’ll now meet a familiar foe in Henderson, who handed Cerrone a pair of losses in WEC title fights.
Henderson hopes to get back on the winning track after a knockout loss to Rafael Dos Anjos in August at UFC Fight Night 49. Henderson protested the stoppage despite taking a stiff punch from Dos Anjos that knocked him over. The setback snapped a two-fight win streak that included a “Performance of the Night” submission of Rustam Khabilov at UFC Fight Night 42.
Henderson hopes to get back on the winning track after a knockout loss to Rafael Dos Anjos in August at UFC Fight Night 49. Henderson protested the stoppage despite taking a stiff punch from Dos Anjos that knocked him over. The setback snapped a two-fight win streak that included a “Performance of the Night” submission of Rustam Khabilov at UFC Fight Night 42.
A timetable for Alvarez’s return wasn’t immediately established.
With the change to the card, UFC Fight Night 59 now includes:
MAIN CARD (FOX Sports 1, 10 p.m. ET)
- Conor McGregor vs. Dennis Siver
- Donald Cerrone vs. Benson Henderson
- Uriah Hall vs. Louis Taylor
- Norman Parke vs. Gleison Tibau
PRELIMINARY CARD (FOX Sports 1, 7 p.m. ET)
- Cathal Pendred vs. Sean Spencer
- John Howard vs. Lorenz Larkin
- Zhang Lipeng vs. Chris Wade
- Patrick Holohan vs. Shane Howell
- Johnny Case vs. Frankie Perez
- Charles Rosa vs. Sean Soriano
PRELIMINARY CARD (UFC Fight Pass, 6 p.m. ET)
- Sean O’Connell vs. Matt Van Buren
- Tateki Matsuda vs. Joby Sanchez
Donald Cerrone replaces Eddie Alvarez , Will Fight Benson Henderson at UFC Fight Night 59
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