The already highly competitive featherweight division has a new contender today, with former lightweight champion Anthony Pettis announcing that he’s dropping down to 145lbs.
According to Pettis’ manager Malki Kawa, the fighter has brought in Mike Dolce to help with his weight cut and hopes to make his divisional debut in August.
The 29 year-old is making the change at a time when he’s experienced a surprisingly swift fall from grace in the lightweight division since defeating Ben Henderson to win the belt back in 2013, and making his one and only successful defense against Gilbert Melendez in December of 2014.
He would then go on to lose the strap after a comprehensive unanimous decision loss to Rafael dos Anjos in March of 2015, and has since come up short by split decision against Eddie Alvarez, while most recently he found the going tough in a striking battle with Edson Barboza, who won by unanimous decision at UFC 197 in April.
Now ‘Showtime’ will hope to start afresh in the 145lb division, but he’ll still have his work cut out for him at the top end of the weight class which is currently ruled by Conor McGregor, with the likes of Frankie Edgar, Jose Aldo and Max Holloway all vying for a shot at the title in 2016.
