They asked for it, they got it. After months of rumors and posturing, a welterweight match-up between contenders Diego Sanchez and Jake Ellenberger has been tentatively scheduled for an undetermined UFC event in the near future, according to reports by Heavy MMA.
"He's a great name, he's fought a lot of great fighters. I would love to fight Diego," Ellenberger said to Tatame last week. "He brings a lot of good tools to the table, but he won't beat me."
A date and location are unknown at this time, however both fighters have verbally agreed on the contest. The match-up has been most discussed for January 28th's UFC on Fox 2 card, but Sanchez's manager, Malki Kawa, shot that prospect down last week via Twitter.
Ellenberger (26-5) heads into the bout with a whirlwind of momentum after soundly defeating former title challenger Jake Shields in 53 seconds at UFC Fight Night 25. The victory capped a five-fight win streak for the 26-year-old, minting his status as one of the division's top prospects.
Sanchez (23-4), meanwhile, last fought in March, where he continued a successful return to the UFC's welterweight division with a "Fight of the Night" triumph over Martin Kampmann. "The Dream" was then briefly linked to a contest against Matt Hughes at UFC 135, before being forced out with a broken hand.