A welterweight matchup between perennial contender Jon Fitch (23-3 MMA, 13-1 UFC) and Jake Ellenberger (23-5 MMA, 2-1 UFC) is on tap for UFC 126's pay-per-view card.
Sources close to the event today told MMAjunkie.com (
www.mmajunkie.com) that at least one fighter has agreed to the fight and that bout agreements are in the process of being finalized.
UFC 126 takes place Feb. 5 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas and is expected to feature a middleweight title fight between reigning champion Anderson Silva and challenger Vitor Belfort.
The event takes place on Super Bowl weekend and airs on pay-per-view.
It's been a long road back to title contention for the American Kickboxing Academy's Fitch. In his most recent appearance, he took on former contender Thiago Alves at UFC 117 and earned a solid unanimous decision. Prior to the bout, UFC president Dana White said the fight would determine the next welterweight contender. But the executive hedged on that promise earlier this month by announcing recent octagon import Jake Shields would get the next crack at the 170-pound belt if he were victorious over Martin Kampmann at this past Saturday's UFC 121.
Shields eked out a decision, and Fitch again must hold his spot in line.
For Ellenberger, it's a chance to climb several steps on the welterweight ladder. The Nebraskan most recently took home an impressive victory at UFC on Versus 2, when his ground and pound skills forced a third-round doctor's stoppage against John Howard. It was his second consecutive win after a second-round TKO over Mike Pyle at UFC 109.
Fitch, meanwhile, has not lost since August 2008, when he fell short in a bid to take Georges St-Pierre's title at UFC 87. It was his sole setback inside the octagon; he is one of the UFC's most winningest competitors with 13 victories to his credit.
Josh Koscheck, Fitch's AKA teammate, will meet St-Pierre on Dec. 11 at UFC 124. In an earlier interview with MMAjunkie.com, Fitch said he won't vie for the welterweight belt if Koscheck is victorious and may instead move up to the middleweight division.
"GSP is first on my list," he said. "But by the time I win the belt at 170, there will be one or two fights left because I will have fought everybody else, and I'll want to move up. That's just where my career will progress.
"Just like the other guys who want to fight the best in the world, I'm the same way. It's always been my intention to clear out 170 and move up. It's just one guy left, and I've been chasing him since the last loss, and I'll continue to chase him until I beat him and get the welterweight title and move up."
For now, though, Fitch has one tough obstacle to clear.
The latest UFC 126 card now includes:
Champ Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort (for middleweight title)*
Forrest Griffin vs. Rich Franklin*
Ryan Bader vs. Jon Jones*
Jake Ellenberger vs. Jon Fitch*
Evan Dunham vs. Kenny Florian*
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