Post by James Hetfield on Aug 15, 2012 0:55:01 GMT -5
UFC on FOX 5 Gets Henderson-Diaz Title Fight, Gustafsson-Rua, Penn-MacDonald
by John Morgan @ MMAJunkie.com on Aug 15, 2012 at 1:00 am ET
Ultimate Fighting Championship's lightweight title will be defended on network television.
USA TODAY Sports and MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) confirmed with UFC officials that current lightweight champion Benson Henderson (17-2 MMA, 5-0 UFC) will face Nate Diaz (16-7, 11-5) at UFC on FOX 5, which takes place Dec. 8 at a host site to be announced.
A light-heavyweight matchup between former champion Mauricio "Shogun" Rua (21-6, 5-4) and Alexander Gustafsson (14-1, 6-1) serves as the night's co-feature, and a B.J. Penn (16-8-2, 12-7-2) vs. Rory MacDonald (13-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) fight also has been rebooked for the card.
A fourth main-card fight is expected to be added to the FOX broadcast in the coming weeks.
Henderson headlined this past weekend's UFC 150 event and scored the first successful defense of his title with a split-decision victory over Frankie Edgar, whom he also narrowly defeated in February to win the title. Despite the close nature of the rematch, UFC President Dana White immediately made it clear that Diaz, who was promised a title shot following a May win over Jim Miller, would get the next crack at the belt.
Rua returns to action following a victory over Brandon Vera earlier this month in UFC on FOX 4's headliner. The Brazilian had an opportunity to earn a title shot against the winner of next month's UFC 151 headliner of champ Jon Jones vs. Dan Henderson, but fellow ex-champ Lyoto Machida leapfrogged him with an impressive stoppage of Ryan Bader.
Rua now faces Gustafsson, who's been inactive since an April win over Thiago Silva in his native Sweden. "The Mauler," one of the light-heavyweight division's top prospects, currently boasts a five-fight win streak. A win over a former champ would serve as a signature victory and propel Gustafsson to serious title consideration.
MacDonald and Penn, meanwhile, initially were slated to co-headline next month's UFC 152 event in Toronto. However, MacDonald suffered a cut in training that required 38 stitches, and the bout was postponed.
Penn, a former two-division champ and future UFC Hall of Famer, hasn't fought since a loss this past October to Nick Diaz at UFC 137. The young MacDonald, meanwhile, recently posted a dominant second-round TKO of Che Mills in UFC 145's co-headliner in April, which marked his third consecutive victory.
UFC ON FOX "HENDERSON VS. DIAZ", 12/8/2012 (Fox/FX/Facebook.com Stream)
KeyArena, Seattle WA
1. Bantamweight bout: Scott Jorgensen vs. John Albert
2. Featherweight bout: Dennis Siver vs. Nam Phan
3. Lightweight bout: Tim Means vs. Abel Trujillo
4. Lightweight bout: Daron Cruickshank vs. Henry Martinez
5. Lightweight bout: Ramsey Nijem vs. Joe Proctor
6. Bantamweight bout: Raphael Assunção vs. Mike Easton
7. Lightweight bout: Yves Edwards vs. Jeremy Stephens
8. Welterweight bout: Mike Swick vs. Matt Brown
9. Welterweight bout: B.J. Penn vs. Rory MacDonald
10. Light Heavyweight bout: Maurício Rua vs. Alexander Gustafsson
11. Lightweight Championship: Benson Henderson (c) vs. Nate Diaz
The first fight will air live on UFC's Facebook page at 4:30pm ET/1:30pm PT; fights 3-8 will air live on FX at 5pm ET/2pm PT; the 4-fight main card will begin at 8pm ET/5pm PT.
by John Morgan @ MMAJunkie.com on Aug 15, 2012 at 1:00 am ET
Ultimate Fighting Championship's lightweight title will be defended on network television.
USA TODAY Sports and MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) confirmed with UFC officials that current lightweight champion Benson Henderson (17-2 MMA, 5-0 UFC) will face Nate Diaz (16-7, 11-5) at UFC on FOX 5, which takes place Dec. 8 at a host site to be announced.
A light-heavyweight matchup between former champion Mauricio "Shogun" Rua (21-6, 5-4) and Alexander Gustafsson (14-1, 6-1) serves as the night's co-feature, and a B.J. Penn (16-8-2, 12-7-2) vs. Rory MacDonald (13-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) fight also has been rebooked for the card.
A fourth main-card fight is expected to be added to the FOX broadcast in the coming weeks.
Henderson headlined this past weekend's UFC 150 event and scored the first successful defense of his title with a split-decision victory over Frankie Edgar, whom he also narrowly defeated in February to win the title. Despite the close nature of the rematch, UFC President Dana White immediately made it clear that Diaz, who was promised a title shot following a May win over Jim Miller, would get the next crack at the belt.
Rua returns to action following a victory over Brandon Vera earlier this month in UFC on FOX 4's headliner. The Brazilian had an opportunity to earn a title shot against the winner of next month's UFC 151 headliner of champ Jon Jones vs. Dan Henderson, but fellow ex-champ Lyoto Machida leapfrogged him with an impressive stoppage of Ryan Bader.
Rua now faces Gustafsson, who's been inactive since an April win over Thiago Silva in his native Sweden. "The Mauler," one of the light-heavyweight division's top prospects, currently boasts a five-fight win streak. A win over a former champ would serve as a signature victory and propel Gustafsson to serious title consideration.
MacDonald and Penn, meanwhile, initially were slated to co-headline next month's UFC 152 event in Toronto. However, MacDonald suffered a cut in training that required 38 stitches, and the bout was postponed.
Penn, a former two-division champ and future UFC Hall of Famer, hasn't fought since a loss this past October to Nick Diaz at UFC 137. The young MacDonald, meanwhile, recently posted a dominant second-round TKO of Che Mills in UFC 145's co-headliner in April, which marked his third consecutive victory.
UFC ON FOX "HENDERSON VS. DIAZ", 12/8/2012 (Fox/FX/Facebook.com Stream)
KeyArena, Seattle WA
1. Bantamweight bout: Scott Jorgensen vs. John Albert
2. Featherweight bout: Dennis Siver vs. Nam Phan
3. Lightweight bout: Tim Means vs. Abel Trujillo
4. Lightweight bout: Daron Cruickshank vs. Henry Martinez
5. Lightweight bout: Ramsey Nijem vs. Joe Proctor
6. Bantamweight bout: Raphael Assunção vs. Mike Easton
7. Lightweight bout: Yves Edwards vs. Jeremy Stephens
8. Welterweight bout: Mike Swick vs. Matt Brown
9. Welterweight bout: B.J. Penn vs. Rory MacDonald
10. Light Heavyweight bout: Maurício Rua vs. Alexander Gustafsson
11. Lightweight Championship: Benson Henderson (c) vs. Nate Diaz
The first fight will air live on UFC's Facebook page at 4:30pm ET/1:30pm PT; fights 3-8 will air live on FX at 5pm ET/2pm PT; the 4-fight main card will begin at 8pm ET/5pm PT.