Team Edson Barboza confirms the fan-favorite has signed a new deal with the UFC

Team Edson Barboza confirmed the fan-favorite signed a new, multi-year deal with the UFC, keeping him with the world’s leading MMA promotion.

Barboza only had one fight left on his current UFC contract following his last outing, a unanimous decision victory over Makwan Amirkhani at UFC Fight Night: Moraes vs. Sandhagen. The 35-year-old Brazilian expressed interest in re-signing on a new contract with the promotion following the conclusion of his current contract, but until now a deal had not been reached. Now that Barboza and the UFC have agreed on a new deal, he plans on making a run for the featherweight title. Barboza’s long-time agent Alex Davis first confirmed the news of him re-signing with the UFC to MMAFighting.com.

“The UFC has opted to re-sign Barboza and keep him on the roster, and keep him active going forward. Barboza and I believe he has what it takes to make a run for the belt and become champion, and that’s his focus,” Davis said.

Barboza (21-9) has been a member of the UFC since 2010. He made his organizational debut at UFC 123 in Detroit when he stopped Mike Lullo with leg kicks that night. Barboza’s kicks would become his calling card, and his spinning wheel kick KO over Terry Etim at UFC 142 in his native Brazil is generally regarded as one of the best knockouts of all time. Over the years, Barboza has performed as one of the top lightweights in the sport, defeating a number of notable fighters such as Dan Hooker, Anthony Pettis, and Beneil Dariush.

After a couple of tough losses at lightweight, Barboza made the move to featherweight and lost a controversial split decision to Dan Ige. He followed that up with the win over Amirkhani, which was enough to get him ranked in the top-15. For his next outing, look for the No. 14 ranked Barboza to target a matchup against someone in the top-10 as he looks to climb the ladder and make a run for UFC gold.

Who do you want to see Edson Barboza fight next?