UFC brings back Jeremy Stephens for Des Moines showdown vs. Mason Jones
Jeremy Stephens is back in the UFC.
Yes, you read that correctly. The 34-promotional fight veteran has reunited with the UFC for a home city bout May 3 at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa against another returning promotional alumnus, Mason Jones.
The UFC made the lightweight bout official early Friday after an initial report by Full Send MMA.
Stephens (29-21 MMA, 15-8 UFC) has not competed in MMA since November 2022 and has not fought in the UFC since July 2021 when he departed the promotion. Post-UFC, Stephens went 1-2 in PFL before he ventured into the world of both gloved and bareknuckle boxing.
After a boxing draw vs. Jose Aldo and a loss to Chris Avila, Stephens signed with BKFC. He defeated Jimmie Rivera and Bobby Taylor, before he beat down Eddie Alvarez in the Knuckle Mania 5 headliner in January.
Jones (15-2 MMA, 1-2 UFC) proved he deserved another look after his UFC departure in 2022. After he returned to the regional scene, Jones went 4-0 with three knockouts for Cage Warriors en route to a UFC re-onboard.
With the addition, the UFC Fight Night lineup for May 3 includes:
- Cory Sandhagen vs. Deiveson Figueiredo
- Reinier de Ridder vs. Bo Nickal
- Mason Jones vs. Jeremy Stephens
- Mario Bautista vs. Marlon Vera
- Yana Santos vs. Miesha Tate
- Montel Jackson vs. Daniel Marcos
- Santiago Ponzinibbio vs. Daniel Rodriguez
- Jeong Yeong Lee vs. Trevor Peek
- Serhiy Sidey vs. Cameron Smotherman
- Junior Tafa vs. Tuco Tokkos
- Azamat Bekoev vs. Ryan Loder