The finalists for “The Ultimate Fighter 8” were revealed Wednesday on Spike TV, and now the full lineup is set for the Dec. 13 finale at The Pearl in Las Vegas.
In the lightweight final,
Phillipe Nover, whom Dana White described as “one of the most talented kids I’ve seen on ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ ever,” will meet
Efrain Escudero.
A 24-year-old ER nurse from Brooklyn, New York, Nover defeated
Joe Duarte, Dave Kaplan and
George Roop to advance.
Escudero, 22, trains with Southwest MMA in Tucson, Ariz. He moved to the finals by submitting all three of his opponents:
Ido Pariente,
Shane Nelson and
Junie Allen Browning.
In the light heavyweight final, Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt
Vinicius Magalhaes will meet
Ryan Bader. The 24-year-old Magalhaes defeated
Rashad Evans’ brother Lance, Jules Bruchez and
Krzysztof Soszynski to earn his spot in the finals.
Bader, 24, was a two-time All-American wrestler at Arizona State University. He advanced with wins over
Kyle Kingsbury,
Tom Lawlor and
Eliot Marshall.
In addition to a middleweight bout between UFC veterans
Jason MacDonald and
Wilson Gouveia and a welterweight rematch between
Kevin Burns and
Anthony Johnson, the UFC filled out the card with fighters from TUF 8. The event airs live on Spike TV at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on Dec. 13.
Lineup
Main Card:
Phillipe Nover vs.
Efrain Escudero
Ryan Bader vs.
Vinicius Magalhaes
Jason MacDonald vs.
Wilson Gouveia
Kevin Burns vs.
Anthony Johnson
Junie Allen Browning vs. Dave Kaplan
Prelims:
Krzysztof Soszynski vs.
Shane Primm
Kyle Kingsbury vs.
Tom Lawlor
Jules Bruchez vs.
Eliot Marshall
Shane Nelson vs.
George Roop
Roli Delgado vs.
John Polakowski
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