Cathal Pendred will fight John Howard at UFC 189.
Howard is 22-11 in his MMA career and is currently on a three-fight losing streak.
Pendred has been angling for another contest since beating Augusto Montano at UFC 188 in Mexico just over two weeks ago. The Dubliner wants to become the only active fighter to go 5-0 in his UFC career within a year of his debut.
I will be fighting at #UFC189 on July 11 in Las Vegas. #Believe pic.twitter.com/XDHhhuXXuy
— Cathal Pendred (@Pendred) June 23, 2015
Howard was originally scheduled to take on Brandon Thatch on the card, but Thatch will now face fight another fighter with Irish links, Gunnar Nelson. Nelson's original opponent John Hathaway was forced to pull out due to injury.
Guys, absolutely gutted to have another setback and miss out on such an opportunity. My sincere apologies to @GunniNelson @ufc and the fans.
— John Hathaway (@ufcjohnhathaway) June 23, 2015
The other big UFC 189-related news is that Jose Aldo has reportedly suffered a fractured rib, putting his title bout with Conor McGregor in doubt.
Also fighting on July 11th will be Dubliner Neil Seery. He will be taking on Louis Smolka.
[Fox Sports]
Picture credit: Ramsey Cardy / SPORTSFILE
