St. Pierre-Hardy, Mir-Carwin Official for UFC 111
Brian Knapp Jan 2, 2010
D.
Mandel/Sherdog.com
Welterweight champion and pound-for-pound luminary Georges St. Pierre will defend his crown against Dan Hardy in the UFC 111 main event on March 27 at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. UFC officials on Saturday made the matchup official.
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Hardy, 27, secured his crack at St. Pierre’s belt with a unanimous decision against Mike Swick at UFC 105 in November. His rise has been rapid since he joined the UFC in 2008. Based out of Team Rough House, Hardy sandwiched split decisions over Akihiro Gono and Marcus Davis around a brutal knockout of Rory Markham. A potent stand-up fighter, he has delivered nearly half (11) of his 23 career victories by KO or TKO.
In the co-feature at UFC 111, Frank Mir will square off with the unbeaten Shane Carwin for the interim heavyweight crown.
Mir will carry plenty of momentum into the matchup. The 30-year-old former titleholder choked French striker Cheick Kongo unconscious at UFC 107 last month and has posted four wins in his past five fights. Submission victories against current UFC heavyweight king Brock Lesnar and former UFC heavyweight titleholder Tim Sylvia anchor his resume.
At 6-foot-4, 255 pounds, the hulking Carwin has finished all 11 of his opponents inside one round, including former title contender Gabriel Gonzaga. The 34-year-old Coloradan owns 22-, 29-, 31-, 44- and 49-second wins. Only one man has reached the second minute against him.
More » UFC 111 “St. Pierre vs. Hardy” Lineup
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