Roy 'Big Country' Nelson
A pair of bouts was announced for the upcoming UFC 159 pay-per-view event as heavyweights Roy ‘Big Country’ Nelson (18-7) will take on Cheick Kongo (18-7-2) while light heavyweights Phil ‘Mr. Wonderful’ Davis (10-1, 1NC) and Vinny Magalhaes (10-5, 1NC) are also set to scrap at the New Jersey event.
The bouts were officially announced during Tuesday nights “UFC Tonight” episode.
UFC 159: Jones vs. Sonnen is expected to take place on April 27, 2013 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. Both bouts are expected to air on the pay-per-view card.
Nelson coached last season of TUF and had been scheduled to face opposing coach Shane Carwin till an injury to the former interim title holder’s knee forced him out of the TUF 16 Finale event. Former TUF 10 teammate to ‘Big Country,’ Matt Mitrione, stepped in as a replacement opponent and was subsequently TKO’d in the first round. The win was Nelson’s second straight putting him at 3-1 over his last four bouts.
Kongo hasn’t fought since July when he earned a win against Shawn Jordan at UFC 149. Jordan was a replacement for Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira who was still recovering from a broken arm suffered in his last fight versus Frank Mir. The win put Kongo back into the win column after a first round TKO loss to Mark Hunt earlier in the year in Japan at UFC 144.
Magalhaes has been looking to pick a fight with Davis for some time now, calling ‘Mr. Wonderful’ out in interviews and on Twitter. The former M-1 global light heavyweight champ returned to the Octagon this past fall in Toronto, earning a second round submission win over Igor Pokrajac at UFC 152. The victory was Magalhaes’ sixth in a row and puts him at 8-1 over his last nine matches.
Davis had a fight scheduled with Forrest Griffin scheduled for UFC 155 last month but a late injury to Griffin forced the cancellation of the match. ‘Mr. Wonderful’ was last seen inside the Octagon in October in a back-to-back rematch with Wagner Prado. At the UFC 153 event, Davis would win handily using an anaconda choke to finish his Brazilian opponent in the second round. He and Prado had fought in August at UFC on FOX 4 but an accidental eye poke left Prado unable to compete.