“The Ultimate Fighter” Season 8 winner
Efrain Escudero will face former Sportfight and Ring of Combat champion
John Gunderson in a lightweight matchup at UFC Fight Night 22 on Sept. 15 at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas. Six fights are now booked for the event, which will air live on Spike TV.
Escudero last saw action in May, when he defeated
Dan Lauzon by unanimous decision at UFC 114. The Mexican-born 24-year-old suffered his only career loss to the unbeaten and world-ranked
Evan Dunham in January. A collegiate All-American wrestler and potent ground fighter, Escudero has secured nine of his 13 wins by submission.
A
Shawn Tompkins protégé, Gunderson has posted four wins in his past five outings. The 31-year-old Houston native notched his first victory inside the Octagon at “The Ultimate Fighter 11” Finale in June, as he outpointed
Mark Holst en route to a unanimous decision at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. A proven finisher, Gunderson has delivered 20 of his 23 career wins by knockout, technical knockout or submission. His list of victims includes controversial EliteXC veteran Charles “Krazy Horse” Bennett.
Meanwhile, Polish import
Tomasz Drwal will toe the line against former Ring of Combat titleholder
Nick Catone in a preliminary middleweight encounter.
Drwal, 28, appears to have recovered from his unfortunate encounter with a nasty
Rousimar Palhares heel hook four months ago. Nine of his last 11 fights have ended inside one round, and he has not gone the distance in nearly six years. Wins over
Lucio Linhares, IFL veteran
Mike Ciesnolevicz and
Pat Miletich protégé
Drew McFedries dot his resume. Drwal has landed more than half (10) of his 17 career victories by KO or TKO.
A Brazilian jiu-jitsu brown belt, Catone last competed in January, when he eked out a split decision against
Jesse Forbes at UFC Fight Night 20. The 28-year-old Englewood, N.J., native wrestled collegiately at Rider University, where he was a three-time Div. I national qualifier and two-time conference champion. In 10 professional appearances, Catone has been finished only once.
A pivotal middleweight showdown pairing former title contender
Demian Maia with the surging
Alan Belcher will headline UFC Fight Night 22, along with a rematch between “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 6 winner
Mac Danzig and
Matt Wiman. Other matches greenlit for the event include lightweight duels pitting American Top Team’s
Cole Miller against “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 9 winner
Ross Pearson and AMA Fight Club standout
Jim Miller against fellow Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt
Gleison Tibau.
Demian Maia vs.
Alan Belcher
Mac Danzig vs.
Matt Wiman
Cole Miller vs.
Ross Pearson
Jim Miller vs.
Gleison Tibau
Efrain Escudero vs.
John Gunderson
Tomasz Drwal vs.
Nick Catone
*
Jared Hamman vs.
Kyle Kingsbury
*
David Mitchell vs.
Anthony Waldburger
* Not Official
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