Yair Rodriguez vs. Jeremy Stephens rematch set for UFC on ESPN 6 co-headliner
Yair Rodriguez and Jeremy Stephens will have the chance to settle their differences in just a few weeks.
After this past weekend’s UFC on ESPN+ 17 headliner ended in no contest when Rodriguez (11-2 MMA, 7-1 UFC) accidentally poked Stephens (28-16 MMA, 15-15 UFC) in the eye just 15 seconds into the bout, the organization has scheduled the featherweights to run it back at UFC on ESPN 6 next month.
UFC on ESPN 6 takes place Oct. 18 at TD Garden in Boston. The card airs on ESPN.
MMA Junkie verified the news with a person with knowledge of the booking after UFC president Dana White released the news to ESPN.com. The fight will be the show’s co-main event.
In what was an anticipated fight at 145 pounds, Rodriguez showed much frustration with the result of the fight meeting with Stephens. He could hardly control his emotions in the immediate aftermath of the fight behind waved off, which followed with the fans at Mexico City Arena showering the octagon – and Stephens as he left the cage – with garbage.
Stephens was taken to hospital and reported a “deep scratch” the eyeball, but immediately called to fight Rodriguez again as soon as possible. Footage then surfaced of a hotel lobby confrontation between the two sides in which gay slurs were tossed back and forth.
Ultimately, Stephens said he’s made big progress with his health, and the UFC opted to move forward with making the fight the co-main event at UFC on ESPN 6, which means three rounds instead of the original five.
The latest UFC on ESPN 6 card now includes:
- Dominick Reyes vs. Chris Weidman
- Yair Rodriguez vs. Jeremy Stephens
- Maycee Barber vs. Gillian Robertson
- Greg Hardy vs. Ben Sosoli
- Tanner Boser vs. Daniel Spitz
- Darren Stewart vs. Deron Winn
- Randy Costa vs. Boston Salmon
- Joe Lauzon vs. Jonathan Pearce
- Brendan Allen vs. Eric Spicely
- Diana Belbita vs. Molly McCann
- Sean Brady vs. Court McGee
- Kyle Bochniak vs. Sean Woodson
- Manny Bermudez vs. Charles Rosa