Which former UFC champions are headlining the upcoming Karate Combat 43 event in December?

Former UFC champions Anthony Pettis and Benson Henderson are set to headline the upcoming Karate Combat 43 event next month.

Pettis and Henderson's bout will be their trilogy, having previously fought twice under MMA rules. 'Showtime' leads their head-to-head 2-0, defeating Henderson at WEC 53 in 2010 as well as submitting him for the UFC lightweight title at UFC 164.

The former MMA stars will trade the octagon and the MMA ruleset for a hybrid style of Karate fighting. The fighters are limited by rules on the ground, so fans should expect a back-and-forth contest spent heavily on the feet.

Pettis recently spoke to Eddie Mercado of Bloody Elbow about the match-up and gave his prediction for the fight. According to 'Showtime,' he expects his fighting style to transition into Karate Combat and believes it will be a tough night for Henderson. He said:

"Ben’s a gangster, man. We’ve seen Ben in some wars, bro. He’s fought the who’s who, just like I have, man. He went to Bellator and fought the who’s who over there, as well. Let’s just say it was God’s plan for those fights."

He continued:

"I have my power shots with my right foot in back. But my Karate style and like points style sparring, I fight with my right leg forward, so I think he’s gonna see a big mixture of both styles and both matchups in this one." [H/t Bloody Elbow]

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Anthony Pettis explains the decision to sign with Karate Combat

Former UFC and Bellator star Anthony Pettis recently put pen to paper a deal with up-and-coming promotion Karate Combat.

The former UFC lightweight champ is arguably the biggest star to have crossed over to the promotion, and he revealed there were some major factors behind this move.

In the same interview with Eddie Mercado, Pettis was asked how his trilogy bout with Benson Henderson came about. According to 'Showtime,' a major factor was Karate Combat's president, Asim Zaidi. He explained:

"I think behind the scenes, man, they hired their new president and you know, he’s one of those guys that just understands the playing field of Mixed Martial Arts. I mean, he’s got one of the best gyms right now with the Goat Shed, and his promoting skills of just his gym alone is crazy. So you know, I think he had the idea, and then he reached out." [H/t Bloody Elbow]