Ian McCall vs. John Lineker Reportedly In The Works

A possible title eliminator in the UFC’s flyweight division is reportedly in the works by matchmaking officials.

According to a report by MMAFighting.com’s Ariel Helwani on UFC Tonight, a match up between top ranked contenders Ian McCall and John Lineker is currently being set up by the promotion. The No.7 ranked Lineker and the No.3 ranked McCall are both reportedly in favour of the idea.

The two flyweights both picked up impressive wins last month, just three days apart from one another. “Uncle Creepy” fought at UFC Fight Night 46 on the nineteenth where he took an impressive unanimous decision win over ex-bantamweight contender Brad Pickett.

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McCall now has back-to-back wins in the UFC after having a rough start in the 125-pound division. The 30-year old made his debut in the promotion back in 2011 where he met current champion Demetrious Johnson in the first round of a four man tournament to determine the UFC’s inaugural flyweight champ.

After a back-and-forth fight, in which many thought McCall won, Johnson was given the nod. However, disaster struck after the bout when it was revealed that a scoring error had taken place and the correct result was actually a majority draw.

Subsequently, a rematch was set up but it didn’t go so well for “Uncle Creepy” and Johnson took a unanimous decision before going on to win the title. Since then McCall has gone 2-1 in the division, losing to Joseph Benavidez before beating Illiarde Santos and Pickett.

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Just three days prior to McCall beating Pickett, Lineker met Alptekin Özkiliç at UFC Fight Night 45. The Brazilian picked up a managed to stop his opponent in the third round with just nine seconds remaining. Following the bout both men received “Fight of the Night” bonuses.

The win over Özkiliç was much needed for “Hands of Stone” after he was outpointed by Ali Bagautinov at UFC 169. It was also the second fight in a row in which Lineker had managed to successfully make weight. Hopefully, the 24-year old has now resolved his weight cutting issue.

Lineker is now 5-2 in the UFC with four of his wins coming by way of knockout. Despite being just 1-1 in his last two fights, he could find himself in line with a title shot if he gets past McCall.

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Stay tuned to LowKick for updates on this fight in the next few days.