Fight Changed AT UFC 129

[The Mac]

source:MMaJunkie

A light-heavyweight bout between Jason Brilz (18-3-1 MMA, 3-2 UFC) and Vladimir Matyushenko (25-5 MMA, 6-3 UFC) is being finalized for April's UFC 129 event in Toronto.

Sources close to the event today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that verbal agreements are in place and that bout agreements are being finalized.

Brilz initially was a replacement for Matt Hamill and expected to fight Phil Davis at the show. But Davis recently was pulled from the card and booked for a UFC Fight Night 24 headliner with Antonio Rogerio Nogueria.

UFC 129 takes place April 29 at Toronto's Rogers Centre and has already broken box-office records for a North American MMA event with 55,000 tickets sold and a live-gate tally of approximately $11 million.

The night's main card airs on pay-per-view, though it's not clear if Brilz vs. Matyushenko will retain its spot on the televised lineup.

Brilz was expected to meet Matyushenko this past November at UFC 122 before a back injury forced him to pull out of the overseas show.

In his most recent octagon appearance, Brilz stepped up on short notice against Antonio Rogerio Nogueira at UFC 114. The full-time firefighter and part-time wrestling coach made the most of the opportunity and dominated the former PRIDE star on the mat during the 15-minute encounter. Although he tired later in the fight, Brilz appeared to have done enough to eek out a decision victory. Nogueira, though, won the bout on two of the three judges' scorecards, which resulted in many boos. Despite the loss, the Midwesterner is 13-2-1 over his past 16 fights going back to 2002.

Matyushenko, meanwhile, is in his second stint in the UFC, and it's been a productive one. His only loss in the four fights came to upcoming title challenger Jon Jones. The Belarusian recently rebounded from that defeat with an impressive first-round TKO of Alexandre Ferreira at UFC 122. It was Matyushenko's fourth win in his past five fights and moved him to 14-2 since 2005

[Swinny]

Good fight and a good fight for Jason Brilz, one he should be able to win and keep his career rising. But a possible win for Matyushenko too and will show if he has anything left in him.

[The Mac]

i think he is too old to really be able to win this but who knows he could suprise me