Tony Ferguson and Kevin Lee to meet for Interim Lightweight title at UFC 216:

Tony Ferguson's luck has been dire recently, but this matchup could grant him Conor.

News broke early Wednesday morning of a shock Interim Lightweight title battle between top contender and grappling sensation Tony Ferguson, and rising star Kevin Lee. Division king Conor McGregor is currently less than two weeks out from a boxing match against the undefeated Floyd Mayweather and in his short absence, the Ultimate Fighting Championship have elected to determine an immediate opponent for 'The Notorious' one, but have strangely threw yet another Interim title into the mix.

Even more surprising than the introduction of an Interim title, is the opponent standing across from Tony Ferguson when 'El Cucuy' makes the walk to the octagon. Ferguson was scheduled to meet Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 209, but will now take on the #7 ranked Kevin Lee. Still only 24 years of age, Lee hasn't truly reached his full potential in the UFC, but has dispatched both Francisco Trinaldo and controversially Michael Chiesa with submissions. Lee headlined UFC Fight Night Oklahoma City and after an promising early showing, found himself set up for a rear-naked choke over Jiu-Jitsu practitioner Chiesa, and as Chiesa claimed he tried to relax and survive, veteran referee Mario Yamasaki stopped the fight early believing 'The Maverick' was unconscious, much to the protest from the hometown favourite. It was widely accepted that the pair would run it back, but it now appears the UFC brass has seized the opportunity to capitalise on the brash talking persona of the Las Vegas native, who has expressed an interest in facing division champ McGregor on multiple occasions. Appearing on the UFC Tonight after show, Ferguson and Lee traded barbs as 'El Cucuy' was tasked with interviewing a possible future opponent. Regardless of hatred between the pair, Ferguson is arguably the best grappler at 155lbs today, evident from his recent dominance in the stacked division which has seen him amass an astonishing 9 fight win streak, overcoming top contenders Edson Barboza and Lando Vannata as well as lighting up former champ Rafael Dos Anjos on his way to a decision win.

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