Lightweights Joe Lauzon, Chris Gruetzemacher to Clash at UFC 223 in Brooklyn

Joe Lauzon and Chris Gruetzemacher will square off in a lightweight duel at UFC 223.

Promotion officials confirmed the pairing to Newsdayy on Thursday. UFC 223 takes place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., on April 7 and is headlined by a lightweight title tilt between interim champ Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov.

A veteran of 25 Octagon appearances, Lauzon will look to halt a two-fight skid against Gruetzemacher. The 33-year-old Massachusetts native dropped a majority decision to Steven Ray at UFC Fight Night 108 before suffering a first-round TKO defeat against Clay Guida at UFC Fight Night 120.

After outpointing Abner Lloveras in his promotional debut, Gruetzemacher has suffered back-to-back submission losses to Chas Skelly and Davi Ramos in his last two UFC outings. The former World Series of Fighting and Strikeforce competitor owns a 13-3 career mark.