Welterweights Mike Pierce (17-5, 9-3 UFC) and Rousimar Palhares (14-5, 7-4 UFC) have agreed to meet at October’s UFC Fight Night 29 event in a battle pitting wrestler against jiu-jitsu artist. MMAFighting.com confirmed the matchup, which was first reported by Brazilian website Lance!
Pierce will be looking to add to his impressive four-fight win streak when he welcomes Palhares down to the welterweight division. Pierce was last seen in action at UFC 162 in July when he scored a second-round knockout win over David Mitchell in the night’s opening bout. Pierce also has wins over Seth Baczynski, Aaron Simpson and Carlos Eduardo Rocha during his current win streak. His only UFC losses have come to Josh Koscheck, Johny Hendricks and Jon Fitch, all fighters who have been granted title shots during their UFC careers.
Palhares looks to end a two-fight losing skid when he makes his debut at 170 pounds. His has suffered back-to-back knockout losses to Alan Belcher and Hector Lombard. Following the loss to Lombard at UFC On FX 6 in December, Palhares was issued a suspension for failing a drug test due to elevated testosterone levels. Those two losses came following a span which saw Palhares win six of seven fights.
UFC Fight Night 29 takes place on Oct. 9 Barueri, Brazil and will see the main card aired on FOX Sports 1. Preliminary card bouts are expected to air on FOX Sports 2 and Facebook. A five-round welterweight bout between Demian Maia and Jake Shields will serve as the night’s main event.
