Veteran Shayna Baszler is finally set to make her official Octagon debut.
The South Dakotan known as “The Queen of Spades” will square off with former Strikeforce bantamweight champion Sarah Kaufman at the TUF: Nations Finale in Quebec City on April 16th.
The UFC reported the matchup Saturday.
Baszler (15-8) has been fighting since 2003. While she’s known to UFC fans for her upset submission loss to Julianna Pena in the opening round of the TUF 18 tournament, her last official bout was at Invicta FC 4 on Jan. 5, 2013, in which she lost in the third round to current UFC contender Alexis Davis. That was voted Fight of the Night.
Kaufman (16-2, 1 NC), meanwhile, was in the news this week, as the Texas commission changed her split decision loss to Jessica Eye over to a no-decision. Prior to that, Kaufman defeated Leslie Smith via split decision in Invicta FC 5’s Fight of the Night, and lost an Aug. 2012 challenge to Ronda Rousey’s Strikeforce title via first-round armbar.
The bout is a rematch, as Kaufman won a unanimous decision over Baszler via unanimous decision on a 2009 Strikeforce card.