A featherweight clash with massive championship implications will take place at UFC Fortaleza when José Aldo returns to the Octagon to take on #4-ranked Renato Moicano on February 2nd. Sources close to MMA News have confirmed the match is set following the initial report from MMAjunkie. The winner of this contest may very well be the next challenger for the featherweight championship, especially if Renato Moicano is able to knock off the legend, as this would present a fresh opponent for the dominant Max Holloway.
Currently ranked #2 in the featherweight rankings, José Aldo is a man who needs no introduction for his stature in the division. Still arguably the most accomplished man to ever compete in the featherweight division, Aldo is far from finished filling out his résumé. Jeremy Stephens learned this at UFC on Fox 30 when Aldo earned the TKO victory over him, and Aldo will look to halt another featherweight’s rise up the rankings when he greets fellow Brazilian Renato Moicano at UFC Fortaleza.
Renato Moicano will enter the fight with a 13-1-1 record. Moicano also owns a victory over Jeremy Stephens and has been putting the featherweight division on notice from the moment he debuted in the UFC in 2014. Currently riding a two-fight win streak, Moicano most recently defeated Cub Swanson via rear naked choke at UFC 227.
The updated UFC Fortaleza now includes:
Raphael Assuncao vs. Marlon Moraes
José Aldo vs. Renato Moicano
Demian Maia vs. Lyman Good
Thiago Alves vs. Max Griffin
Alexa Grasso vs. Marina Rodriguez
Junior Albini vs. Dmitriy Sosnovskiy
Magomed Bibulatov vs. Rogerio Bontorin
Mara Romero Borella vs. Taila Santos
Bryan Barberena vs. Vicente Luque
Justin Ledet vs. Johnny Walker
Said Nurmagomedov vs. Ricardo Ramos
Anthony Hernandez vs. Markus Perez