Hooker vs. St. Denis, Fez vs. Rafi added to UFC 325

MMA fans rejoice, as UFC 325 features two fan-favorite lightweight matchups.

The pay-per-view card, set for the promotion’s eighth visit to Sydney, Australia, will now feature two 155-pound ranked-contest bouts, the UFC announced Saturday.

Dan Hooker (No. 6) takes on Benoit St. Denis (No. 8) in the co-main event of the UFC’s second primetime event of the new year on Jan. 31, while Rafael Fazio takes on Mauricio Rafi.

Headlining the fight will be Alexander Volkanovski, who will defend his featherweight title on home soil in a title rematch against Diego Lopes.

Volkanovski won’t be the only fighter competing in a friendly environment, as Hooker, a New Zealand native, is also hoping for a boost when he steps into the Octagon. “The Hangman” could use that, after his most recent fight — a submission loss to Arman Zaroukian — snapped a three-fight winning streak.

Standing in his way will be one of the rising fighters in the 155-pound ranks in St. Denis, who has won three straight fights, all by stoppage. His most recent victory came less than 30 seconds into the opening round, when he floored Benel Dariush with a vicious left hook.

Neither fighter prefers the judges to decide their fights, so fans should expect plenty of sweeties to fly.

Meanwhile, moving up the pecking order on the lightweight leaderboard, Fazio and Raffi are both looking to catch their own momentum.

Feyzef’s last fight ended with a much-needed unanimous decision in his favor, snapping a three-fight skid that halted the goodwill of the six-bout win streak that preceded it.

As for Rafi, he is coming off the first loss of his UFC career. A submission loss to Saint-Denis in September that ended his unblemished 3-0 start to promotion.

Almost half of Fez’s 11 UFC bouts have ended by KO/TKO, and Rafi comes in with three of his four fights yet to go the distance.

The all-lightweight action could help clear up some of the uncertain picture atop the division while champion Ilya Topuria took a leave of absence.

As Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pumblet battle for the interim 155-pound title at UFC 324, just over a week before the action kicks off in Sydney, a fourth of the lightweight contenders at UFC 325 will surely make their case for the next title shot.