Anthony Pettis will look to defend his UFC lightweight title against streaking contender Rafael dos Anjos on March 14 in the main event of UFC 185, the promotion today announced.
If all goes well, the bout will serve as Pettis' second title defense since the dazzling but oft-injured 27-year-old submitted Benson Henderson with a first-round armbar in Aug. 2013 to claim the UFC lightweight strap.
The 17 months following that victory proved frustrating for Pettis (18-2), as a scheduled title defense against Josh Thomson fell apart due to yet another injury setback, followed by the taping of The Ultimate Fighter 20 against rival coach Gilbert Melendez.
Pettis ultimately made up for lost time though, becoming the first man to ever finish Melendez by impressively dispatching the former Strikeforce champion with a second-round guillotine this past December. A former WEC champion, Pettis is 9-1 since 2010, with seven of those victories ending via knockout or submission.
Now he'll take on dos Anjos (23-7), a longtime player at lightweight who rebounded from a shaky start to his UFC career to win eight of his last nine fights.
Dos Anjos, 30, owns highly-regarded victories over Henderson and Donald Cerrone, and most recently dominated Nate Diaz at UFC on FOX 13 to earn the next shot at Pettis' belt.
UFC 185 takes place at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, TX.