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In his anticipated final fight before retiring, Frankie Edgar will face Chris Gutierrez at UFC 281.
After an initial rumour from ESPN.com, which quoted Edgar's declaration that it would be his last octagon walk "unless someone gets lippy in Seaside next summer," MMA Fighting confirmed the bantamweight matchup.
The former UFC lightweight champion's final UFC fight will take place at Madison Square Garden in New York City on November 12. This will be his 30th and last UFC fight. Edgar has fought twice at MSG, including his most recent contest with Marlon Vera, which resulted in a brutal front kick knockout loss.
Before crossing the Hudson River to get experience on the local (and legal) MMA circuit, Edgar began his MMA career as a fighter in New York's underground scene. At UFC 67, he made his lightweight debut for the organisation, surviving a vicious kneebar from Tyson Griffin to earn a decision and his first post-fight bonus.
Despite being undersized at 155 pounds, Edgar won six fights before defeating B.J. Penn for the lightweight championship at UFC 112 and successfully defending it at UFC 118. Benson Henderson defeated him at his fourth attempt to defend his title. A knockout loss to Chan Sung Jung and three subsequent efforts to regain a featherweight title—two against the legendary 145-pound fighter Jose Aldo—led to his switch to bantamweight.
Since lowering his weight to 135 pounds, Edgar has gone 1-2, losing two consecutive knockout fights against Vera and Cory Sandhagen. The native of New Jersey is a lock for the UFC Hall of Fame.
After going unbeaten in seven straight matches and most recently stopping Batgerel Danaa in a highlight-reel fashion, Chris Gutierrez takes on the biggest name of his UFC career.
The main event of UFC 281 features a middleweight title match between Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira.