Welterweight veterans Thiago Alves, Tim Means set to clash at UFC on ESPN 7

It'll likely be fireworks in the nation's capital when "The Pitbull" and "The Dirty Bird" square off.

Two welterweight fan favorites are set to meet in the nation’s capital.

A matchup between longtime UFC veterans Thiago Alves (23-14 MMA, 15-11 UFC) and Tim Means (28-11-1 MMA, 10-8 UFC) is set for the event, promotion officials announced Friday.

UFC on ESPN 7 takes place Dec. 7 at Capital One Arena in Washington D.C.

At UFC 237 in May, Alves dropped an unanimous decision to Laureano Staropoli. He was then scheduled to fight Gunnar Nelson in the co-main event of UFC on ESPN+ 17 on Sept. 28. However, Alves was forced to pull out of the contest weeks prior due to injury.

Conversely, Means was on the receiving end of a wild, come-from-behind knockout by Niko Price at UFC on ESPN+ 4 in March. Prior to that, Means picked up a knockout victory of his own when he brutalized Ricky Rainey the TUF 28 Finale in December.

Both men are in dire need of a victory after having dropped three out of their most recent four outings.

With the addition, the UFC on ESPN 7 lineup now includes:

Alistair Overeem vs. Walt Harris Yana Kunitskaya vs. Aspen Ladd Cynthia Calvillo vs. Claudia Gadelha Ben Rothwell vs. Stefan Struve Carlos Condit vs. Mickey Gall Thiago Alves vs. Tim Means Cortney Casey vs. Virna Jandiroba Joe Solecki vs. Matt Wiman Cody Stamann vs. Song Yadong Bryce Mitchell vs. Matt Sayles Alonzo Menifield vs. Trevor Smith