The card for the UFC’s fifth visit down under is coming close to being complete with the addition today of three further contest for the December 7 event including a womens bout. The event goes down at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre in Queensland.
The match-ups confirmed today were Julie Kedzie vs Aleksandra Albu, Alex Garcia vs Andreas Stahl and Alex Caceres vs Mitch Gagnon.
When Kedzie and Albu meet in the Octagon, it will be the first time the UFC has hosted a female MMA bout in Australia after only earlier this year introducing a women’s division following the success and popularity of Ronda Rousey.
Julie Kedzie (16-12) will bring a advantage in experience having fought 28 pro MMA fights, while her opponent has a 1-0 listed record on sherdog which was a first-round TKO back in June in her home country of Russia. However several reports have indicated that she is undefeated after 5 professional bouts.
Her opponent Julie Kedzie trains at Jacksons MMA but is currently on a career slump having lost her last three bouts, including a third round submission loss to Miesha Tate.
As first reported by Swedish MMA site MMA Nytt, newcomers Andreas Stahl and Canadian Alex Garcia will clash in a welterweight bout. Garcia comes from Montreal’s Tristar Gym and will bring a 10-1 record into the fight that includes four straight wins. He is highly touted as one of Canada’s hottest prospect. His only loss came to Seth Baczynski back in April 2011.
Hailing out of Sweden, Stahl has been training with the Alliance MMA team alongside fellow Swede Alexander Gustafsson. Stahl brings an unblemished 9-0 record with all his bouts having taken in Sweden and neighbouring Denmark.
In the final match-up announced today, MMA Kanvas revealed that former The Ultimate Fighter contestant Alex “Bruce Leeroy” Caceres (9-5, 1NC) and Canadian Mitch Gagnon (10-2) have verbally agreed to meet in the Brisbane event. Following a stint on TUF: Team GSP vs Team Koscheck, Caceres struggled in his four UFC bouts, winning only once. Caceres then won three in a row, however a failed drug test overturned his decision win over Kyung Ho Kang to a no-contest. Caceres was suspended for six months and returned last month where he defeated Roland Delorme in a close split points decision.
His opponent on the card will be Gagnon who brings an impressive 10 submission wins from 12 career fights. He lost his debut UFC fight to Bryan Caraway but since then has submitted Walel Watson and last month Dustin Kimura to win submission of the night honours from the UFC.
The event will be headlined by a heavyweight clash between Mark Hunt & Antonio Silva, while in the semi-main James Te Huna goes to battle against former champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.
Fights announced:
- Mark Hunt vs Antonio Silva
- James Te Huna vs Mauricio Rua
- Pat Barry vs Soa Palelei
- Antony Perosh vs Ryan Bader
- Dylan Andrews vs Clint Hester
- Caio Magalhaes vs Nick Ring
- Nam Phan vs Takeya Mizugaki
- Brian Melancon vs Robert Whittaker
- Krzysztof Jotko vs Bruno Santos
- Alexandra Albu vs Julie Kedzie
- Alex Garcia vs Andreas Stahl
- Alex Caceres vs Mitch Gagnon
