Travis Browne (Photo by Josh Hedges for UFC.com)
On Monday, Ultimate Fighting Championship president Dana White announced the addition of a heavyweight tilt between veterans Travis ‘Hapa’ Browne (13-1-1) and Gabriel ‘Napão’ Gonzaga (14-6) to this April’s upcoming TUF 17 Finale event.
White announced the news on Twitter (@danawhite) after landing in Ireland today.
– “Heavyweights Gabriel ‘Napao’ Gonzaga and Travis ‘Hapa’ Brown have agreed to fight at the Ultimate Fighter Finale April 13.”
The Ultimate Fighter: Team Jones vs. Team Sonnen Finale (aka TUF 17 Finale) is expected to take place on April 13, 2013 at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event will feature the middleweight final between the TUF 17 cast.
Browne saw his undefeated streak come to an end last October with a first round TKO loss to Antonio ‘Bigfoot’ Silva at the UFC on FX 5 event. Browne also suffered a hamstring injury in the bout. ‘Hapa’ had won three straight and was 4-0-1 before the defeat. Browne picked up his last victory in April of last year after submitting Chad Griggs in the first round with an arm triangle choke.
Gonzaga is looking to make it four straight wins having recently submitted Ben Rothwell last month at the UFC on FX 7 show in Brazil. It was Gonzaga’s second straight victory in the Octagon since his dismissal back in the fall of 2010. ‘Napão’ had been released following back-to-back losses and had picked up a win at a Reality Fighting show in October 2011. He then stepped in as a late replacement at UFC 142 in January 2012 picking up a first round win over Ednaldo Oliveira.