UFC on FX 8, headlined by Vitor Belfort vs. Luke Rockhold, got some much needed additions to the fight card.
The already announced co-main event of the evening is another important middleweight clash. Strikeforce veteran Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza takes on Costa Philippou in a meeting of Top-10 185-pound fighters.
The UFC recently announced seven additional bouts for the card. Each of the bouts features at least one Brazilian.
“This is the fourth Brazilian state that we have the joy of visiting and another great achievement for the UFC,” said Grace Tourinho, spokesperson for UFC in Brazil. “Brazilian fans still have many good things to expect from us in 2013, including live events, the next season of The Ultimate Fighter Brasil and the opening of a UFC headquarters in the country.”
Three of the seven bouts take place in the UFC’s lightweight division.
Rafael dos Anjos vs. Evan Dunham, Francisco Trinaldo vs. Mike Rio and Gleison Tibau vs. John Cholish all look to make moves at 155 pounds.
In Dunham’s most recent outing, he defeated Gleison Tibau by split decision. Now he will look to potentially crack into the Top 10 of the UFC’s official rankings when he meets the eighth-ranked dos Anjos. It is the evening’s most significant lightweight scrap.
Middleweights Cezar Ferreira and CB Dollaway battle inside the Octagon in what will be Dollaway’s second straight bout in Brazil. He defeated The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil standout Daniel Sarafian in January by split decision.
Flyweights get in on the action when John Lineker and Azamat Gashimov exchange leather. Gashimov lost his UFC debut to Ivan Menjivar by tapout, and now he drops to 125 pounds against the heavy-handed Brazilian. Lineker rebounded from his UFC debut loss by defeating Yasuhiro Urushitani last November. An impressive showing by either man would rocket them up the flyweight ladder.
Paulo Thiago returns to the cage for the first time since suffering his second consecutive loss, a decision to Dong Hyun Kim, to take on Lance Benoist. Also, Fabio Maldonado and Roger Hollett meet in a light heavyweight fight.
The additional seven scraps make nine total fights for the card.
UFC on FX 8 comes to you from Santa Catarina, Brazil on May 18, live on FX.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com