Heavyweight Fight Booked For UFC 130
Heavyweights Travis Browne (10-0-1 MMA, 1-0-1 UFC) and Stefan Struve (21-4 MMA, 5-2 UFC) have been penciled in for a UFC event expected to be UFC 130.
Multiple sources close to the event today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that verbal agreements are in place, though bout agreements have not been signed.
The tentatively titled UFC 130 event is expected to take place May 28 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Memorial Day weekend.
Thus far, only one bout has been rumored for the event: a welterweight meeting between one-time contender Thiago Alves (19-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) and up-and-comer Rick Story (12-3 MMA, 5-1 UFC). Sources told MMAjunkie.com verbal agreements are in place for the bout with contracts on the way.
In his most recent octagon appearance, Struve issued a violent rebuke to the trash-talk stylings of Sean McCorkle. In a bout promoted to co-main-event status based in part on the strength of the pair's Internet sparring, the Dutch fighter overcame early submission trouble to pound out his foe in the first round.
Struve was heavily rumored for a booking with Brendan Schaub at UFC on Versus 3 in March, but Schaub subsequently was yanked from the card and booked for a bout with Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic at UFC 128.
Browne is looking to redeem himself after a lackluster showing against Cheick Kongo in his most recent octagon outing. He battered the Frenchman in the first round of their UFC 120 meeting but had trouble building momentum as the fight stretched on. Kongo surged back in the second and third rounds, but the referee muted his efforts by deducting a point in the final frame for the repeated grabbing of Browne's shorts. That led to a unanimous draw on the judges' scorecards, which was a disappointing ending by all accounts.
The sometimes K-9 trainer Browne delivered an impressive debut four months prior with a first-round TKO stoppage over James McSweeney
