Henderson vs Melendez, Cormier vs Mir Set For UFC On FOX 7UFC Lightweight Champion “Smooth” Benson Henderson will make the next defence of his title against final Strikeforce 155-pound king Gilbert “El Niño” Melendez at UFC on FOX 7. The main event championship bout is set to take place on April 20th at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California.

Also confirmed for the UFC on FOX 7 card is a rescheduled bout between Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix winner Daniel Cormier and former UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir. Both matchups were initially confirmed by Yahoo! Sports and formally announced by UFC officials earlier today.

Henderson (18-2-0) captured the UFC title in February with a razor-thin decision victory over Frankie “The Answer” Edgar and retained the belt in a hotly-contested rematch in August. With Edgar turning his attention to the featherweight division following his second straight loss, Henderson was then matched up against surging contender Nate Diaz in December and walked away with a dominant Unanimous Decision win. Henderson remains unbeaten in six appearances inside the Octagon.

Melendez (21-2-0) has not lost in more than four years and is widely regarded as one of MMA’s premier lightweights outside of the UFC. He now makes his long-awaited debut for the promotion in the April title fight. Currently riding a seven-fight winning streak, Melendez has totalled notable recent victories over Shinya Aoki, Tatsuya Kawajiri, Jorge Masvidal and rival Josh Thomson twice. The Cesar Gracie-trained standout now looks to ascend to the top spot in the 155-pound rankings.

 

Cormier (11-0-0) and Mir (16-6-0) were initially in talks to face off under the Strikeforce banner, but Mir sustained an injury and Cormier went on to demolish Dion “The Soldier” Staring this past weekend on the final Strikeforce card. Cormier has yet to taste defeat in his MMA career and the powerful wrestler went a perfect 8-0 in Strikeforce action. He now makes the move to the UFC to face Mir, a decorated jiu-jitsu specialist who tried unsuccessfully to reclaim the UFC Heavyweight Championship in his most recent fight in May. Prior to the May defeat, Mir had won three straight fights.

UFC on FOX 7 takes place on April 20th at HP Pavilion in San Jose, California.

 

 

(Photo Credit: Sherdog.com)