Another Strikeforce Fighter Heads to UFC
Karlos Vemola will not be fighting in UFC 155 and will be
replaced by Derek Brunson, according to USA Today. The deal hasn't been
finalized as of yet, according to the article, but there are verbal agreements
in place and it's expected to be formally announced soon. Brunson has a 9-2
record in MMA and will replace Vemola in his match against Chris Leben, who has
a 22-8 MMA record overall and a 12-7 record in UFC.
Brunson's last two fights were losses. He won is first nine
fights, however, and is looking to establish himself in the UFC. Strikeforce
will be holding its last-ever fight in January.
His opponent, Leben is coming back from a suspension. The
fighter tested positive for two prescription pain killers: oxycodone and
oxymorphone. This followed his loss to Mark Munoz in UFC 138, resulting in the fighter
being suspended for a year.
Leben has since been treated for addiction—this was the
second time he'd failed a drug test—and said he's ready to get back to his
fighting career and that he is more focused than ever, according to the
article.
The biggest fight of the night will be Junior dos Santos
taking on Cain Velasquez for the heavyweight title. Other fights on the card
include Alan Belcher vs. Yushin Okami, Tim Boetsch vs. Constantinos Philippou
and Joe Lauzon vs. Jim Miller. This will be a pay-per-view event. It was
recently announced that the dos Santos vs. Velasquez fight will be referred by
Herb Dean, who is highly regarded as one of the best referees in the UFC. He
recently won the Best Referee honor at the 2011 World MMA Awards, according to
Bleacher Report, and has also received a lot of praise from the president of
the UFC, Dana White, for his good calls and control of fights.
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