Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza will be returning to the middleweight division to face Uriah Hall at UFC 249 in Brooklyn, New York.
Both Souza and Hall have verbally agreed to the bout according to an ESPN report, which will bring Souza’s days at light heavyweight to an abrupt end. MMA News was able to confirm the matchup following ESPN’s report. Prior to trying his luck at light heavyweight, Souza had been a mainstay at the top of the middleweight rankings, often finding himself conceivably one fight away from a title shot. But since April of 2017, Souza has had his struggles in the division, going 2-3 in his last five fights in the division.
In his most recent middleweight bout, Jacare Souza (26-8) dropped a unanimous decision to Jack Hermansson in April. Souza would then move up to light heavyweight to fight Jan Blachowicz in November, with Souza once again coming out on the wrong side of a decision. After deciding to leave the middleweight division, Souza was removed from the rankings. He will now look to begin re-establishing himself as a top contender in the division at UFC 249.
Uriah Hall (15-9) is currently ranked #10 at
middleweight and defeating a recent top-5 contender in Jacare Souza would undoubtedly
give Hall a boost in the division, especially given that it would be the third
consecutive win for Hall and the fourth out of his last five fights. Most
recently, Hall defeated the now #14-ranked Antonio Carlos Junior in September.
UFC 249 will take place from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn New York on April 18, 2020, and will be headlined by Khabib Nurmagomedov defending his lightweight championship against Tony Ferguson.
Do you believe Jacare Souza will have a successful
middleweight return when he faces Uriah Hall at UFC 249?