Former welterweight champion Johny Hendricks will face kickboxing ace Stephen Thompson at UFC 196.
It was one of four bouts UFC officials announced Saturday night during the UFC 194 telecast, and Mike Bohn and Matt Erickson of MMA Junkie subsequently reported it.
UFC 196, an important card that takes place February 6 over Super Bowl weekend, will be headlined by a rematch between heavyweight champ Fabricio Werdum and former champ Cain Velasquez, which UFC President Dana White originally announced Wednesday.
The other three UFC 196 contests officials announced Saturday are:
- Heavyweight bout between Roy Nelson (20-12) and Jared Rosholt (14-2)
- Lightweight bout between Josh Burkman (27-12) and K.J. Noons (13-8)
- Welterweight bout between Mike Pyle (26-11-1) and Sean Spencer (12-4)
A world champion kickboxer before making the transition to MMA, the 32-year-old “Wonderboy” Thompson (11-1) scored a highlight-reel knockout in his last bout, landing a spinning wheel kick on Jake Ellenberger in July.
Hendricks (17-3) lost the welterweight title in 2014 to current champion Robbie Lawler. The hard-hitting former wrestling All-American bested Matt Brown this spring to return to the win column. A match with Tyron Woodley was booked for October, but a bad weight cut caused a kidney stone and forced Hendricks to withdraw from the bout.
Neither the 38-year-old Werdum nor the 33-year-old Velasquez has competed since June, when Werdum submitted Velasquez to capture the heavyweight title. Velasquez (13-2) had held the belt for two-and-a-half years, although he competed only four times during that span because of various injuries.
Werdum (20-5-1) is a perfect 6-0 since returning to the UFC in February 2012. His much-improved muay thai striking has helped to key a late-career resurgence and provided a needed complement to his world-class grappling skills.
After those two, the most interesting bout announced for the card to date could be Nelson vs. Rosholt. Rosholt is known for a grinding but effective wrestling attack, while the 39-year-old Nelson has slowed significantly over the past couple of years and may be fighting for his UFC job after losing his past three engagements.
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