Lightweight veterans Diego Ferreira and Michael Johnson will meet in May.
Ferreira (17-5 MMA, 8-5 UFC) takes on Johnson (21-18 MMA, 13-14 UFC) at UFC Fight Night on May 20. A venue and location have yet to be announced.
Multiple people with knowledge of the situation confirmed the booking to MMA Junkie following an initial report from MMA Mania. The people requested anonymity because the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Ferreira hasn’t competed since December 2021. The 38-year-old Fortis MMA fighter will look to snap a three-fight losing skid after setbacks to Beneil Dariush, Gregor Gillespie, and Mateusz Gamrot. Prior to that, Ferreira was on a six-fight winning streak – including a submission of former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis.
After dropping four straight, Johnson has won two of his past three. The “Ultimate Fighter 12” finalist is coming off a unanimous decision win over Marc Diakiese this past December at UFC on ESPN 42.
The current lineup for the UFC’s May 20 event includes:
- Vanessa Demopoulos vs. Karolina Kowalkiewicz
- Anthony Hernandez vs. Edmen Shahbazyan
- Ilir Latifi vs. Rodrigo Nascimento
- Viacheslav Borshchev vs. Hayisaer Maheshate
- Diego Ferreira vs. Michael Johnson