Anthony Johnson vs Ryan Bader headline UFC on Fox 18

[Edge Guerrero]

A light heavyweight bout with title shot implications headlines the UFC on Fox 18 fight card at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. on Jan. 30. Top ranked Anthony Johnson (20-5) faces third ranked Ryan Bader (20-4) in the the main event. The news was first reported on Wednesday’s edition of UFC Tonight.

Bader had hoped to get a title shot against champion Daniel Cormier, but the Las Vegas-based fight promotion opted to line him up against Johnson instead. “Darth” is riding a five-fight winning streak, including a unanimous decision win over former champion Rashad Evans in his last outing.

Johnson is coming off a knockout win over eighth-ranked Jimi Manuwa at UFC 191 on Sept. 5. He rebounded from a loss to Cormier in his previous fight for the light heavyweight title and hopes a win over Bader puts him right back in title contention.

With the announcement of the Johnson-Bader bout, expect to see news break soon that a rematch between stripped-champion Jon Jones and current titleholder Cormier has been made. Jones was stripped of his title and suspended by the organization following his involvement in a hit-and-run incident in April. Cormier defeated Johnson at UFC 187 to earn the vacant belt. Jones plead guilty to leaving the scene of an accident and received 18-months supervised probation. He was officially reinstated by the UFC on Oct. 23.

Source:http://www.mmaweekly.com/light-heavyweights-anthony-johnson-and-ryan-bader-headline-ufc-on-fox-18-on-jan-30