Frankie celebrates winning at UFC 136. Photo by Carlos Ozório.
The fans who already got a hold of their tickets for UFC Rio, set for October 13 at Rio de Janeiro’s HSBC Arena, just saw the value of their investment shoot through the roof overnight. The reason being that Erik Koch got injured and had to forsake his post as challenger at UFC 153.
“We had two rough weeks here at the UFC after Dan Henderson got injured, and I arrive at work today and find out Eric Koch got injured. But everything worked out; Frankie Edgar, being the warrior he is, accepted the fight right away,” said Dana White. “I’m stoked. I think everyone’s going to be excited about this fight, a match-up a lot of people have been waiting on for some time now.”
A former lightweight champion, brown belt and stalwart boxer, Frankie Edgar trains Jiu-Jitsu under Ricardo Cachorrão and will be making his debut as a featherweight, after seeing a successful career one division up despite being labeled as “small” for the weight class. Now Aldo, trained by the black belt Dedé Pederneiras, is riding a 14-fight win streak.
Edgar now has a shot at joining a select club in the UFC, made up of Randy Couture and BJ Penn—the champions-of-two-divisions club.
What do you say, gentle reader; how do you figure this fight will play out? Will it be frenzied fists flying on the feet or an eyeful display of grappling elegance on the ground? Let us know below.
UFC 153 – Aldo vs Edgar
Saturday, October 13, 2012
HSBC Arena, Barra da Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro
José Aldo vs Frankie Edgar
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