Irene Aldana will fight Karol Rosa at
#UFC296 on December 16th. (first rep. @damadeferromma)
#UFC
#MMA
#UFCESPN
#UFC2023 pic.twitter.com/yOAoRHdtze— Marcel Dorff 🇳🇱🇮🇩 (@BigMarcel24)
September 27, 2023
After her first bid for
Ultimate Fighting Championship ended in misery, Irene
Aldana now has a first step back to contention—and it may be in
a different division.
Aldana (14-7) will take on up-and-comer Karol Rosa
(17-5) at UFC 296 on Dec. 16 in Las Vegas. It will be the first
Octagon appearance for the 35-year-old Mexican since her
unsuccessful challenge of UFC bantamweight champ Amanda
Nunes at UFC 289 in June. That fight ended in a five-round
drubbing by the champ, to the tune of two 50-44 scorecards and one
50-43. Afterward, Nunes retired as a two-division champion at
bantamweight and featherweight.
Aldana had won four of her last five leading up to that title shot,
including back-to-back finishes of Yana Santos
and Macy
Chiasson, and will look to keep herself in the title picture by
defeating Rosa. The question, however, is which title picture,
since Rosa has not fought at bantamweight in nearly a year. While
the weight class of the upcoming clash has not yet been confirmed,
Rosa moved up to featherweight after a majority decision win over
Lina
Lansberg at UFC 280 last October.
Rosa’s featherweight debut did not go her way, as she dropped a
unanimous decision to Norma
Dumont in April. She bounced back from that defeat with a
split-decision win against Santos in July. Afterward, the
28-year-old Brazilian expressed her intention to remain at 145
pounds if possible, but it should be noted that UFC President Dana
White has previously said that ending the women’s featherweight
division “makes sense” after Nunes’ retirement.
UFC 296 takes place on Dec. 16 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
While the lineup has yet to be finalized, the event is currently
scheduled to be headlined by a championship double-header, with
Leon
Edwards defending his welterweight belt against Colby
Covington in the main event, and flyweight champ Alexandre
Pantoja taking on Brandon
Royval in the co-main. The main card is also set to feature
former interim lightweight champion Tony
Ferguson, as he looks to snap a miserable six-fight losing
streak against rising British star Paddy
Pimblett.