Joey Beltran will meet undefeated heavyweight prospect
Chad Corvin in a preliminary matchup at UFC 113 “Machida vs. Shogun 2” on May 8 at the Bell Centre in Montreal. Ten bouts are now official for the event, which will feature the ballyhooed rematch between light heavyweight champion
Lyoto Machida and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.
Unbeaten and untested through six professional bouts, the 6-foot-5, 255-pound Corvin last appeared in February 2009, when he earned a first-round technical knockout against
Scott Barrett at an Xtreme Fighting Championships show in Knoxville, Tenn. In fact, none of Corvin’s first six opponents have lasted longer than 99 seconds against him. An accomplished high school wrestler who saw a potential collegiate career derailed by academics, he raised many an eyebrow when he knocked out South African heavyweight
Rico Hattingh in 19 seconds in December 2008.
Beltran, a 5150 Combat League heavyweight champion, made his promotional debut at UFC 109 in February, when, as a late replacement for
Mostapha Al-Turk, he stopped
Rolles Gracie on second-round strikes. The 28-year-old Oceanside, Calif., native trains at Alliance MMA, alongside
Brandon Vera,
Phil Davis and current World Extreme Cagefighting bantamweight champion
Dominick Cruz. Beltran has posted seven wins in eight fights and holds notable victories against UFC veterans
Sherman Pendergarst,
Wes Combs and
Houston Alexander.
In addition to the Machida-Rua rematch, UFC 113 will feature a pivotal welterweight tilt pitting
Josh Koscheck against
Paul Daley, a lightweight bout pairing
Sam Stout with
Jeremy Stephens and a heavyweight matchup between Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson and “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 10 quarter-finalist
Matt Mitrione. The show will also mark the return of former middleweight title contender
Patrick Cote, as he locks horns with
Alan Belcher.
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