UFC 307 fight card: Alex Pereira to defend title vs. Khalil Rountree Jr., Raquel Pennington vs. Julianna Pena

In keeping with his active approach to his fight schedule, UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira will fight for the third time in 2024 when he takes on Khalil Rountree in the main event of UFC 307. The fight was announced by UFC CEO Dana White on Friday. UFC 307 is scheduled to take place Oct. 5 in Salt Lake City.

Pereira has become one of the UFC's top stars after achieving significant success in a short time after transitioning from an accomplished kickboxing career to a full-time MMA career. UFC 307 marks the third consecutive year in which Pereira has fought three times.

Pereira made his UFC debut in November 2021 and rattled off three straight wins before facing former kickboxing rival Israel Adesanya for the middleweight title. Pereira defeated Adesanya to win the title before losing the rematch. He then moved up to light heavyweight, winning the title with a knockout of Jiri Prochazka in his second fight at the weight.

Pereira has successfully defended the title twice since winning it, most recently stepping in on short notice and knocking out Prochazka in a rematch at UFC 303 after Conor McGregor pulled out of the event. While some -- including Pereira -- have wanted to see him give a shot at becoming a three-division champion by moving to heavyweight, White has been resistant to the idea.

Rountree brings a five-fight winning streak to the fight, with four of those wins coming by TKO. In his most recent fight, Rountree stopped former light heavyweight title contender Anthony Smith.

Rountree was set to fight former champion Jamahal Hill at UFC 303 but withdrew from the event after taking a banned substance. Upon realizing he had ingested a banned substance, Rountree reached out to the UFC to notify them and was handed a two-month suspension.

He now has a massive opportunity to become a champion and take down one of the UFC's most popular fighters.

In addition to Pereira vs. Rountree, White announced that the co-main event will feature Raquel Pennington defending her women's bantamweight title against former champion Julianna Pena. Pennington defeated Mayra Bueno Silva in January to win the title, which was vacated after Amanda Nunes announced her retirement. Pena shocked the world in December 2021 with a submission win over Nunes before losing the title in a rematch. Pena has not fought since the July 2022 rematch with Nunes.