Lerone Murphy will put his unbeaten record on the line against the ever dangerous Edson Barboza in the main event of the UFC's May 18 card.
The bout will see the number 14 ranked Murphy and number 11 ranked Barboza look to advance their positions and move higher up the rankings in an extremely competitive Featherweight division.
The Brit will be making the walk to The Octagon for the first time this year, following his withdrawal from his scheduled bout against Dan Ige at UFC Fight Night: Hermansson vs Pyfer.
Since signing with the UFC in 2019, Murphy has been one of many athletes from UK shores to be excelling in the promotion. Due to injuries, Murphy has struggled to compete regularly, but he managed to compete twice in 2023, racking up unanimous decision wins against Gabriel Santos at UFC 286, before eventually getting to perform in front of a British crowd again at UFC Fight Night: Aspinall vs Tybura.
Barboza will make the walk to The Octagon for the 30th time, after a perfect 2023 in which he racked up two wins against Billy Quarantillo and Sodiq Yusuff.
His flashy striking was once again on display for all to see when he fought Quarantillo, knocking out the American with a brutal knee halfway through the first round of their contest.
After almost losing his main event bout against Sodiq Yusuff in the first round, Barboza rallied over the next four to secure a unanimous decision win.
In a promotional carer spanning 14 years, the Brazilian has faced the whose who of both the Featherweight and Lightweight division. After making the move to 145lbs, Barboza has amassed a 4-3 record with notable wins over Shane Burgos and Makwan Amirkhani.
Elsewhere on the card, Angela Hill will face Luana Pinheiro, Abus Magomedov will take on Warlley Alves and Tim Elliott will square off against Tatsuro Taira.
