Ronaldo Souza’s light heavyweight experiment is over for now.
“Jacare” returns to the middleweight division on April 18 to fight Uriah Hall (15-9) at UFC 249 in Brooklyn, multiple people with knowledge of the booking confirmed to MMA Fighting. ESPN was first to report the matchup.
After competing at 185 pounds for the entirety of his career, the 40-year-old Souza made his light heavyweight debut against Jan Blachowicz at UFC Sao Paulo in November. The result was a split decision loss and a performance he himself deemed “boring.” It also was the third loss in four fights for “Jacare,” whose record fell to 26-8-1 (1 NC).
Prior to joining the UFC in 2013, “Jacare” held titles in the now-defunct Strikeforce and DREAM promotions.
Hall, 35, is trending in the opposite direction, having won two straight and three of his last four. In his lone appearance of 2019, he won a unanimous decision over Antonio Carlos Junior at UFC Vancouver.
“Prime Time” holds notable wins over Gegard Mousasi, Thiago Santos, and Chris Leben.
With reporting by Guilherme Cruz and Damon Martin.