Fight card details for UFC 120 released
More details have emerged about the Ultimate Fighting Championships' UFC 120 card, which is set to be held in London, England on October 16. The UFC recently released a poster displaying the top six fighters on the card, settling speculation as to who would be fighting in top bouts of the evening.
The event, the ninth UFC card to be held in the United Kingdom, features three British fighters on the main card, Michael Bisping, Dan Hardy, and John Hathaway. In addition, five of the undercard fights have been announced to date.
Main Card
Michael Bisping vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama:
UFC veteran and former The Ultimate Fighter coach Michael “The Count” Bisping squares off against DREAM transplant and fan favourite Yoshihiro “Sexyama” Akiyama for the middleweight event of the night. Bisping, known for his technical striking ability will face a prominent judoka in Akiyama. Bisping enters the fight coming from a decision win over Dan Miller; Akiyama from his first loss in five years to Chris Leben via triangle choke at UFC 116. Both fighters are known for their striking ability, despite Akiyama's background in judo.
Dan Hardy vs. Carlos Condit
Coming fresh off of an impressive title shot attempt against Georges St-Pierre, Dan Hardy is eager to prove himself against Carlos “Natural Born Killer” Condit in the night’s first welterweight event. Despite losing the match to St-Pierre via decision, Hardy proved his mettle by resisting a career threatening armbar by the champion in the fourth round. Condit, the final man to hold the welterweight title for World Extreme Cagefighting, seeks to break Hardy’s stride with his striking, developed at Greg Jackson’s school in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
John Hathaway vs. Mike Pyle
Rising star John “The Hitman” Hathaway faces former WEC champion Mike “Quicksand” Pyle in the young fighter’s second fight in his home country. Pyle has been pegged as a replacement for original opponent Dong Hyun Kim, and is seen as not being nearly as big a threat as the Korean grappler. Regardless, the 22 year old Hathaway will be sure to put on a good show, hot off of an upset against contender Diego Sanchez.
Preliminary Card
Cheick Kongo vs. Travis Browne
Bisping’s teammate at Wolfslair academy, Chieck Kongo is set for a heavyweight matchup against Travis “Hapa” Browne. Browne currently boasts a 10 – 0 record including a win in his debut against The Ultimate Fighter alumnus James McSweeney.
McSweeney also makes an appearance on the undercard, slated to fight Ultimate Fighter Coach Tom Blackledge. McSweeney was called in as a replacement for New Zealender James Te-Huna, and this fight will be his first in the light heavyweight division.
Winner of the Ultimate fighter season 9, James “Lightning” WIlks, is also schedules for an undercard event against Claude “The Prince” Patrick. It is sure to be an interesting matchup for fans of technical ground game; Patrick is a submission artist well versed in jiu-jitsu, while Wilks is a submission wrestler.
The next matchup of the night is a light heavyweight bout between Cyrille “The Snake” Diabaté and Swedish Shooto veteran Alexander Gustafsson. Diabaté is a talented muay thai practitioner, and has made appearances on The Ultimate Fighter as a striking coach. Gustafsson has been making the rounds in European leagues such as FinnFight as a shoot wrestler, but his ground game was exposed during his loss to Phil Davis at UFC 112.
The final fight on the undercard is a heavyweight matchup between Wolfslair trainee Rob Broughton and Brazilian knockout artist Vinicius de Kappke Quieroz. Quieroz has not fought outside of Brazil, but is currently coming out of a four win streak, all by first round knockout.
There are also several names rumoured to be on the card but not confirmed, including Spencer Fisher, Kurt Warburton, Steve Cantwell and Paul Sass.
The event will be one of the few events to air for free on Spike TV on tape delay.
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