Las Vegas attorney Kirk Hendrick, who headed the attorney general’s gaming division in the late 1990s and spent nearly a decade as an executive and chief legal officer for Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), will be appointed chairman of the Gaming Control Board by Gov. Joe Lombardo, chief of staff Ben Kieckhefer confirmed Wednesday.

Hendrick, 58, is expected to begin his four-year appointment at the end of January.

He replaces control board member Brittnie Watkins, who has been the agency’s acting chairwoman since the end of November following the departure of former chairman Brin Gibson.

Watkins has two years left in her term on the board.