Fresh off a huge knockout victory over Doo Ho Choi, Jeremy Stephens looks to knock another prospect off the featherweight ladder in Josh Emmett at UFC Orlando.
The Orlando Sentinel first reported the UFC Orlando main event.
Two hot featherweights coming off of great knockouts in a main event? Yes please. Josh Emmett burst into the featherweight title picture with a stunning knockout of perennial contender Ricardo Lamas last month. Jeremy Stephens extended his win streak to two with a hard knockout over South Korean phenom Doo Ho Choi just last weekend.
They are on opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of experience, with Emmett owning a 4-1 UFC record and Stephens holding a 14-13 record in the Octagon. That’s a 22-fight experience advantage in favor of “Lil’ Heathen.”
Josh Emmett is a Team Alpha Male product that has had a solid UFC run thus far. After winning in his first two Octagon appearances, Emmett took a tough split decision loss to Desmond Green. Since then, Emmett got back on track with a win over Felipe Arantes, then a quick knockout against top-five featherweight Ricardo Lamas on short notice. The win propelled the young Emmett to the number-four ranking at 145 pounds.
Jeremy Stephens has been around the block and back, with his first fight coming back in 2005. Stephens had a five-year run in the UFC’s lightweight division, going 7-8 then dropping to 145 in 2013. Since then, Stephens has been awarded a Fight of the Night bonus four times, and is 7-5 at featherweight.
UFC Orlando will be on FOX on February 24, taking place in the Amway Center. Aside from the Stephens-Emmett main event, Jessica Andrade will battle Tecia Torres in an apparent number-one contender bout at strawweight, Mike Perry will return against Max Griffin, and Renan Barao will take on rising bantamweight Brian Kelleher.
