Ex-UFC Champions Set For Trilogy Fight In Karate Combat

A pair of former UFC lightweight champions are set to meet for the third time in a bout that will take place under the Karate Combat banner.

Fight fans saw former UFC fighter Sam Alvey make his debut in Karate Combat earlier this year and score a huge first-round knockout. It's uncertain how much extra attention "Smilin" managed to bring to that event, but MMA fans will certainly take notice of the headlining bout for Karate Combat 43 that will feature Anthony Pettis and Benson Henderson.

The bout was first reported by Guilherme Cruz of MMA Fighting. It was also revealed that Karate Combat is actively holding talks with a number of other prominent MMA names such as Luke Rockhold, Lyoto Machida, Michael Page, and Darren Till.

Henderson and Pettis first met in the cage in the main event of WEC 53, which was the final WEC card before the promotion was absorbed by the UFC. That bout saw Pettis claim the lightweight title via unanimous decision and also land his famous “Showtime Kick” to hand Henderson his first loss in the WEC.

Henderson went on to win the UFC lightweight belt and defend it three times before a rematch with Pettis at UFC 164 ended with a second defeat - this time via first-round submission. Following his exit from the UFC in 2015, Henderson had a lengthy run with Bellator where he challenged for both the promotion’s welterweight and lightweight titles.

Pettis also moved on from the UFC in 2020 and signed with the PFL, where he made it to the semifinals of the promotion's 2022 season but only managed to collect one win out of five bouts. The 36-year-old most recently made his boxing debut in April and upset Roy Jones Jr. by winning a majority decision.

Fans probably weren’t expecting to see Henderson and Pettis meet for a third time at this point in their respective careers, but the matchup is intriguing enough that there will probably be quite a few MMA fans that tune in to watch Karate Combat 43 on December 15.

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