Daniel Pineda is officially back in the UFC.
Iridium Sports, who represents Pineda, revealed that the 34-year-old has sighed a multi-fight contract deal with the UFC on Instagram:
The MMA veteran made his debut for the promotion back in 2012 and he started off strong by getting back-to-back wins over Pat Schilling (via submission at UFC on FX 1) and Mackens Semerzier (via submission at UFC on FX 2); however, his loss against Mike Brown at UFC 146 started a downward slide for the lightweight fighter.
Having lost four out of his last five fights, Pineda was eventually released shortly after his bout against Robert Whiteford at UFC 174. Since then, Pineda has succesfully bounced around different promotions such as Bellator MMA, Legacy Fighting Alliance, and Fury Fighting Championship.
Pineda hasn’t fought since his time under Professional Fighters League where the veteran had originally won his bouts against Movlid Khaybulaev and Jeremy Kennedy until the ruling was overturned due to Pineda failing a drug test that led to him serving a six month suspension. His professional record currently stands at 26 wins and 13 losses. He’ll make his return this Saturday at UFC Fight Night: Poirier vs. Hooker against Sean Woodson.