Another title fight as been added to the UFC’s return to Madison Square Garden later this year.
It has been announced by the promotion that longtime rivals Cody Garbrandt and TJ Dillashaw will duel for the bantamweight title on the November 11th event in the Big Apple. This title fight comes in the wake of the recently-made middleweight title bout between Michael Bisping and the returning Georges St-Pierre, a fight which is expected to headline what will likely be the biggest UFC pay-per-view card of 2017.
A bout between Garbrandt and Dillashaw was originally intended to take place at UFC 213 last month in Las Vegas, however a back injury sustained by the champion put paid to that particular booking, prompting Dillashaw to unsuccessfully pursue a bout with 125-pound champion Demetrious Johnson. When that began to look like an impossibility, former 135-pound champion Dillashaw shifted his focus back to his former Team Alpha Male colleague Garbrandt in the latest chapter in the long-running feud between Dillashaw and his former training partners.
Garbrant (11-0) won the bantamweight title by outpointing Dominick Cruz over five rounds in their clash at UFC 207 last December, while Dillashaw (14-3) has won two straight bouts against John Lineker and Raphael Assuncao since losing his title via split decision to Cruz in January of last year.
In addition to the two title fights, UFC 217 will also feature bouts between Johny Hendricks and Paulo Borrachinha, Corey Anderson and Patrick Cummins and Curtis Blaydes takes on Oleksiy Oliynyk.
Last year’s UFC 205, the promotion’s first visit to Madison Square Garden, included a total of three title fights.
