TOM WATSON-NICK CATONE MIDDLEWEIGHT SHOWDOWN ADDED TO UFC 169

A new middleweight pairing has been added to UFC 169, as Tom Watson will face Nick Catone at the Feb. 1 event.

Anchored by a pair title fights, UFC 169 will feature the return of bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz following a two-year injury hiatus, as “The Dominator” meets interim belt holder Renan Barao in a title unification headliner.

UFC 169 takes place at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., and will also see featherweight kingpin Jose Aldo put his gold on the line against Ricardo Lamas in the evening’s co-main event.

Watson made his UFC debut in September 2012, when he narrowly lost to Brad Tavares via split decision. Since that setback, the Brit has alternated between wins and losses, stopping Stanislav Nedkov at UFC on Fuel TV 7 before falling to Thales Leites in a unanimous verdict this past August.

In Catone, Watson faces a seven-time UFC veteran looking to snap a two-fight losing streak. The New Jersey native has not competed since December of last year and saw a planned UFC 159 booking scratched this past April when he missed weight and was hospitalized due to dehydration.