A long-rumored welterweight fight between Ricardo Almeida and MMA legend Matt Hughes is set to take place at UFC 117 in August. Although not officially announced, both fighters have agreed to the bout set to take place at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California.
Almeida (12-3) made his welterweight debut for the UFC in March at UFC 111 by beating Matt Brown with a rear naked choke in the second round of their match-up. Prior to his drop to welterweight, Almeida competed as a middleweight fighter with mixed success. He won fights over Rob Yundt, Matt Horwich, and Kendall Grove, but he lost a split decision to Patrick Cote when they met at UFC 86 in July, 2008.
Hughes (44-7) is the most dominant welterweight fighter in the history of the sport. After consecutive losses to Georges St. Pierre and Thiago Alves, Hughes has won his last two fights over Matt Serra and Renzo Gracie. The win over Gracie came at UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi. Hughes beat the Brazilian legend via TKO in the third round in what proved to be a very slow, plodding fight.
Hughes will now face one of Gracie’s students in Almeida. The winner could move up to the upper-echelon of the division with a win, but would still be a fight or two away from a title shot. The fight is expected to air on the pay-per-view portion of the telecast.
UFC 117 will feature middleweight champion Anderson Silva defending his title against top contender Chael Sonnen.
