Kevin Vallejos is getting another step up in the UFC rankings, this time against a perennial top contender.<\/p>\n
UFC Fight Night 269<\/a> will feature a headliner between Vallejos (17-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) and Josh Emmett (19-6 MMA, 10-6 UFC) \u2013 five rounds, March 14 at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas, the promotion announced Friday.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n Vallejos, 24, had a stupendous first calendar year in the UFC, so much so that he earned MMA Junkie’s 2025 Breakthrough Fighter of the Year<\/a> award. He debuted with a knockout of Seung Woo Choi, defeated Danny Silva by unanimous decision, and then turned in a spectacular spinning backfist knockout of promotion-ranked Giga Chikadze.<\/p>\n Emmett, 40, will aim to derail Vallejos’ hype and snap a two-fight skid in the process. Emmett has been a staple of the upper echelon of the UFC’s featherweight division for years. Even though he’s lost four of five, the defeats have come against top-tier contenders and a champion: Yair Rodriguez, Lerone Murphy, Youssef Zalal, and Ilia Topuria<\/a>.<\/p>\n The current UFC Fight Night 269 lineup includes:<\/p>\n Josh Emmett vs. Kevin Vallejos<\/p>\n Amanda Lemos vs. Gillian Robertson<\/p>\n Lone’er Kavanagh vs. Bruno Silva<\/p>\n Eryk Anders vs. Brad Tavares<\/p>\n Kennedy Nzechukwu vs. Vitor Petrino<\/p>\n Ion Cutelaba vs. Oumar Sy<\/p>\n Bia Mesquita vs. Montserrat Rendon<\/p>\n Elijah Smith vs. Su Young You<\/p>\n Luan Lacerda vs. Rinya Nakamura<\/p>\n Harry Hardwick vs. Marwan Rahiki<\/p>\n