Elvis Mutapcic to Defend Middleweight Crown Against Sam Alvey at MFC 36

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Maximum Fighting Championshipmiddleweight title holder Elvis Mutapcic will make his first title defense against “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 16 veteran Sam Alvey at MFC 36.

Promotion officials announced the pairing on Sunday. MFC 36 “Reality Check” goes down at the Shaw Conference Center in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada on Feb. 15. The main card airs live on AXS TV and is headlined by a 155-pound championship bout between Mukai Maromo and Graham Spencer.

“I think anyone who knows me and knows Elvis knows that this fight is going to end in a knockout,” said Alvey in a release. “We’re both good strikers and we’re going to settle things striking. The only difference is that Elvis thinks his striking is better than mine, but I know my striking is better than his.”

Mutapcic has won four consecutive fights, most recently stopping Joseph Henle in the third round at MFC 35 to capture the promotion’s 185-pound strap. “The King” has finished all but one of his 12 career triumphs by knockout or submission.

A two-time Bellator Fighting Championships veteran, the recently-signed Alvey was eliminated from “TUF 16” by Joey Rivera in a preliminary bout. The Team Quest representative is 3-1 in 2012, including a first-round TKO stoppage of Lucas Lopes at ShoFight 20 in June.