A bantamweight match-up between #6 ranked Michael McDonald and #11 ranked John Lineker is set to co-headline UFC Fight Night 91, which is headlined by a lightweight bout between Michael Chiesa and Tony Ferguson.
The news was announced on Wednesday’s UFC Tonight.
McDonald (17-3 MMA, 6-2 UFC) went 4-0 with two stoppage in his first four octagon bouts, before earning a shot at the bantamweight championship. McDonald and Renan Barao squared off for the interim title at UFC on FUEL TV 7, but after a back and forth fight, Barao submitted McDonald in the fourth round. Following the loss, “Mayday” submitted Brad Pickett at UFC Fight Night 26. McDonald then fought, and lost to Urijah Faber in December of 2013. Due to numerous injuries, McDonald was out from December 2013 to January 2016. McDonald made his return to the octagon at UFC 195 and submitted Masanori Kanehara.
Lineker (27-7 MMA, 8-2 UFC) missed weight four times as a UFC Flyweight, and has therefore been forced up to bantamweight. “Hands of Stone” is 2-0 at 135lbs, though, as he submitted Francisco Rivera in the “Fight of the Night” at UFC 191 before out-pointing Rob Font at UFC 198. The Brazilian has finished six of his eight UFC wins, picking up five knockouts and one submission. Lineker is riding a four fight winning streak going into this fight and will be looking to make that five and take a step closer to the title on July 13.
UFC Fight Night 91 takes place live from the Denny Sanford Premier Center on July 13, 2016. The card is set to be headlined by a pivotal lightweight bout between Michael Chiesa and Tony Ferguson.
