Cooper Neill/Getty Images
Another UFC fighter is trying his hand at boxing.
Former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis will be making his sweet science debut against boxing legend Roy Jones Jr. at Jorge Masdival’s Gamebred Boxing 4 on April 1, Masdival announced Monday (h/t Nick Baldwin of The Score).
The full card will feature Jose Aldo vs. Jeremy Stephens; Ronaldo Souza vs. Vitor Belfort; Paul Daley vs. Anthony Taylor; and Pearl Gonzalez vs. Gina Mazany.
While Masvidal, 38, will be fighting Gilbert Burns at UFC 287 on April 8, he’s taken on boxing promotion as his MMA career likely starts winding to a close.
And he’s excited to see Jones in action against Pettis, as he said on The MMA Hour Monday (h/t Alexander K. Lee of MMA Fighting):
“I’ve always been a fan of Jones. Always wanted to work with Roy Jones in some capacity. He’s going to be fighting someone that inspired me in my career numerous times. WEC champion, UFC champion, I think both his wins for the UFC title were finishes. This guy has knockouts and finishes at 145, 155, 170, it’s crazy what this guy has done in his career in MMA. Great striker. He agreed to fight the walking, living legend, the pound-for-pound king, one of the best fighters, athletes, I’ve ever seen in combat sports, period, vs. Pettis.”
Jones, 54, went 66-9 in his career, last fighting and beating Scott Sigmon in Feb. 2018. At various points in his career, he won titles in the middleweight, super middleweight, light heavyweight, and heavyweight divisions.
He’ll face Pettis, 36, who was a multi-division champion himself (welterweight, lightweight, and featherweight) in the UFC, going 25-14 in his professional career.
Pettis last fought at PFL 7 in Aug. 2022, losing to Stevie Ray for a second consecutive time. It was his 12th loss in his past 19 fights in MMA. He last fought in the UFC in 2020.
It certainly will be a high-profile matchup, with Pettis seemingly holding an advantage in age, though Jones bringing far more boxing experience and success in the craft to the table. It is another matchup in a long line of former UFC fighters or celebrities entering the boxing ring to give the sweet science a shot.
