Once-beaten bantamweight prospect Michael McDonald will meet Bellator Fighting Championships veteran Nick Pace at UFC 133 on Aug. 6 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, the promotion announced on Thursday.
A Team Tiger Schulmann representative, Pace was the first bantamweight champion in the history of the Ring of Combat promotion. The once-beaten 23-year-old last appeared at “The Ultimate Fighter 12” Finale in December, when he submitted fellow WEC import Will Campuzano with a third-round pillory choke at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. Pace has secured four of his six victories by knockout, technical knockout or submission. He suffered his only career setback in a unanimous decision loss to the world-ranked Demetrious Johnson at WEC 51 in September.
UFC 133 will also feature a middleweight duel pairing American Top Team’s Alessio Sakara with “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 4 alum Jorge Rivera. Sakara has recorded three wins in his last four appearances, though he lost a unanimous decision to undefeated middleweight prospect Chris Weidman at UFC Live 3 in March. Rivera has not competed since UFC 127 in February, when he succumbed to second-round strikes from Michael Bisping in Australia.