After losing to Erik Koch in his UFC debut, Raphael Assuncao has lost three of his last four fights. Now, Assuncao will look to bounce back with a drop to the bantamweight division and a fight against UFC newcomer Johnny Eduardo.
Heading in a much different direction than fellow Brazilian Assuncao, the 33-year-old Eduardo has won his last 11 bouts. Although he will be making his UFC debut, Eduardo brings a lot of experience into UFC 134, as he has competed against the likes of Takanori Gomi.
For Assuncao, a loss would mean a fourth defeat in five appearances, which could lead to his release from the UFC. The former WEC featherweight has beaten fighters such as Jorge Masvidal, Joe Lauzon and Yves Jabouin over the course of his seven-year career.
In what will be the final Brazilian-on-Brazilian fight of the evening, Assuncao and Eduardo are both well-versed in jiu-jitsu. However, Eduardo has been submitted more than a handful of times throughout his career, which could end up being the determining factor in this bout.
Between them, Assuncao and Eduardo have combined for 22 submission victories, so there is a very good chance that this fight ends with someone tapping or going to sleep. Despite falling on hard times as of late, the numbers are on Assuncao’s side heading into this fight.
This fight between Assuncao and Eduardo will serve as the fourth bout on the UFC 134 Facebook stream, which will start at approximately 6 p.m. ET on the UFC’s official Facebook page. The live Facebook stream will air five preliminary card bouts before leading into the final two preliminary card fights on Spike TV.
Sean Smith is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report MMA. Sean has also had his work featured on UFC.com. For the latest insight and updates on everything MMA, you can follow Sean on Twitter @SeanSmithMMA.