After weeks of rumours, the light-heavyweight contest between Tyson Pedro and Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua has been made official for UFC Adelaide.
The event takes place at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre on December 2 with the the promotion also confirming a previous report that Tai Tuivasa will headline the event against Junior dos Santos.
It will be Rua’s second visit to compete down-under, having previously defeated James Te Huna at UFC Fight Night 33 in Brisbane. Te Huna also happened to be a training partner of Tyson Pedro. Rua, 36, is a former UFC light-heavyweight title holder who made a name for himself prior in Japan fighting for Pride FC where he defeated the likes of Alistair Overeem, Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson and Kevin Randleman. Rua (25-11 MMA, 9-9 UFC), last fought back in July where he was stopped by Anthony Smith in the first round.
Pedro (7-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) also comes into the contest on the back of a loss after the Sydney based fighter was submitted by Ovince St. Preux in June. The 27-year-old holds win against Khalil Rountree, Paul Craig and Saparbeg Safarov in the UFC.
Another previously announced fight was made official, with heavyweights Mark Hunt and Justin Willis clashing in what is expected to Mark Hunt’s UFC swansong. The bout will be the last fight on the 44-year-old’s UFC contract.
- Tai Tuivasa vs. Junior Dos Santos
- Tyson Pedro vs. Mauricio Rua
- Wilson Reis vs. Ben Nguyen
- Mark Hunt vs. Justin Willis
- Jimmy Crute vs. Paul Craig
- Ashkan Mokhtarian vs. Kai Kara-France
