Two major names are reportedly set to be in action at the UFC 307 pay-per-view, targeted for Salt Lake City, Utah, on October 5.
Legendary former featherweight champion José Aldo and two-time PFL title winner Kayla Harrison have their returns in the works for the numbered event, with the former being lined up to face Mario Bautista and the latter expected to share the Octagon with Ketlen Vieira.
Aldo returned from a short-lived retirement on home soil this past May, outpointing Jonathan Martinez at UFC 301 in Rio de Janeiro. Having fought out his contract, uncertainty surrounded "Junior's" status and future plans.
But in spite of boxing talk, Ag. Fight reported this week that the Brazilian has committed to another outing inside the Octagon.
The outlet also corroborated a previous report from Super Lutas' Léo Guimaraes, who was the first to reveal plans for Harrison and Vieira to collide at UFC 307.
Aldo Targets Second Win Since Return, Harrison Looks For Second UFC Win Since PFL Switch
Should these two matchups be confirmed, both Aldo and Harrison will be looking to build on strong outings in the first half of this year.
Aldo (32-8) originally brought his MMA career to an end after his pursuit of a second bantamweight title shot was stalled by Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 278 in August 2022. Prior to that, he'd reeled off three straight wins over Marlon Vera, Pedro Munhoz, and Rob Font.
The ex-featherweight kingpin, who fell short of two-division glory opposite Petr Yan in the summer of 2020, went on to compete in three boxing matches, winning two and fighting to a majority draw against fellow UFC vet Jeremy Stephens.
He subsequently made his successful comeback to the cage in Rio this year, returning to the rankings at #8 as a result. He's next tasked with defending his position on the ladder against the #12-ranked Bautista (14-2), a teammate of champion Sean O'Malley's who has had his hand raised in six consecutive bouts. His most recent triumph came at the expense of Ricky Simón this past January.
Harrison (17-1) transitioned from judo, a sport in which she collected back-to-back Olympic gold medals in 2012 and 2016, to mixed martial arts and joined the PFL. After winning two lightweight seasons, her bid for a third title came to a halt in the final opposite Larissa Pacheco.
After returning with a victory over Aspen Ladd last November, the Ohio native committed to a UFC switch and a venture down at bantamweight. That foray got underway in strong style this past April, where she thrilled the UFC 300 crowd by submitting a former champion in Holly Holm.
Having entered the title picture at #3, Harrison will need to get through the #2-ranked Vieira (14-3) if she's to book her first championship opportunity in the UFC. The Brazilian is coming off a decision victory over Pannie Kianzad in July 2023, a result that saw her bounce back from a narrow defeat at the hands of now-champ Raquel Pennington.
With these additions, the fights currently expected to take place at UFC 307 on October 5 are as follows:
- Movsar Evloev vs. Aljamain Sterling (featherweight)
- José Aldo vs. Mario Bautista (bantamweight)
- Chris Curtis vs. Kevin Holland (middleweight)
- Ketlen Vieira vs. Kayla Harrison (women's bantamweight)
- Marina Rodriguez vs. Iasmin Lucindo (women's strawweight)
- Ihor Potieria vs. César Almeida (middleweight)
