Vicente Luque-Geoff Neal Matchup Targeted for Aug. 6 UFC Fight Night

In the works … Vicente Luque (@VicenteLuqueMMA) vs. Geoff Neal (@handzofsteelmma) for a UFC Fight Night on Aug. 6, location TBD. Fun, important matchup in the UFC’s welterweight division. pic.twitter.com/paN8sYEklY

— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) May 12, 2022

A spot inside of the top 10 of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s ultra-competitive welterweight division will be up for grabs in early August.

The promotion’s broadcast partner of ESPN broke the news on Thursday that Vicente Luque (21-8-1) would be taking on Geoff Neal (14-4) at a UFC Fight Night event on Aug. 6. ESPN did note that the contracts had yet to be signed, but verbal agreements are in place. The destination of the event has not been announced, but it may be staged in the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Brazil’s Luque saw a four-fight finish streak come to a grinding halt in a rematch with Belal Muhammad in April. In their five-round battle, Muhammad won the second outing to make it 1-1 between the two, taking a clear-cut decision over “The Silent Assassin.” Prior to his setback to Muhamad, Luque had finished names like of Tyron Woodley, Michael Chiesa and Randy Brown as he surged up the division.

Neal bounced back from a pair of decision losses – and thereby ending the first losing streak of his career – by snagging a split decision over Santiago Ponzinibbio in December. Before running into Stephen Thompson at the end of 2020, Neal had strung together seven straight wins, with five in the UFC by beating foes including the aforementioned Muhammad, Niko Price and Mike Perry.

The UFC Fight Night card on August 6 has not yet been given a destination, but its headliner comes at light heavyweight when Thiago Santos takes on Jamahal Hill. Other than that fight and Luque-Neal, other fights on the billing include one at strawweight, as Cory McKenna comes to blows with Miranda Granger, as well as a lightweight scrap when Terrance McKinney faces Erick Gonzalez.