Philip De Fries Meets Matt Mitrione in Heavyweight Confrontation at UFC 155 in Las Vegas

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An expected UFC on FX 5 booking between Matt Mitrione and Rob Broughton has been scrapped in favor of a UFC 155 showdown between Mitrione and Philip De Fries.

De Fries announced the new pairing Friday via Facebook and Twitter after Mitrione revealed Thursday that his fight with Broughton had been canceled. This marks the second time a meeting between Broughton and Mitrione has been called off, as they had initially been slated to battle at UFC on Fox 4 earlier this month before the bout was nixed due to visa issues. The reason for Broughton’s recent withdrawal is unknown.

UFC 155 takes place Dec. 29 at a to-be-announced venue in Las Vegas. The show’s main draw airs live on pay-per-view and is expected to feature a light heavyweight showdown between Forrest Griffin and Chael Sonnen, as well as a lightweight scrap pitting Joe Lauzon against Gray Maynard.

De Fries, 26, has gone 2-1 in the UFC, recently rebounding from his first career defeat to submit fellow Brit Oli Thompson on Aug. 4 at UFC on Fox 4. The grappler made his Octagon debut against Broughton this past November, taking a unanimous decision from “The Bear” at UFC 138 before suffering a first-round knockout defeat to Stipe Miocic at February’s UFC on Fuel TV 1.

Mitrione has not competed since dropping a unanimous decision to Cheick Kongo at UFC 137 this past October. Prior to that setback, “Meathead” had won his first five professional contests, earning stoppage victories over Tim Hague and Christian Morecraft last year. A former NFL player, Mitrione, 34, owns four of his five victories by way of knockout.