UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya will return to action in June, facing familiar foe Marvin Vettori at UFC 263.
The UFC has confirmed the bout will headline on the pay-per-view card which will also see the men's flyweight title on the line. A venue for the event is yet to be announced but is likely to be in the United States.
It will be the second time Adesanya and Vettori have met inside the UFC octagon. In April 2018, Adesanya (20-1) claimed a split decision win over his Italian counterpart in what was his second UFC appearance. Adesanya dictated the fight through the first two rounds and outstruck Vettori in both, before Vettori was able to take the fight to the canvas with some success to win the third round. To the surprise of most fans, one of the judges found enough to award two rounds to Vettori in the bout, but the other two ruled in favour of Adesanya.
The bout will be Adesanya's first since suffering the first loss of his career in his bid to become a two-weight champion, falling on the wrong side of a unanimous decision defeat to light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz. He is 9-0 in the UFC middleweight division.