Kenny Florian vs. Diego Nunes in the Works for UFC 131

Former lightweight contender Kenny Florian revealed that he will make his featherweight debut against Diego Nunes at UFC 131.

Florian (14-5, 11-4 UFC) recently came up short in his third bid for a lightweight title shot, dropping a unanimous decision to Gray Maynard at UFC 118. The Ultimate Fighter 1 finalist had expressed a desire to immediately face the best that the featherweight division has to offer.

Nunes (16-1, 1-0 UFC) certainly fits that bill. After a 4-1 mark in the WEC, Nunes made a successful UFC debut at UFC 125, defeating former featherweight champion Mike Brown by split decision.

Florian last three fights:
Loss (Unanimous Decision) Gray Maynard - UFC 118: Edgar vs. Penn 2 (08/28/2010)
Win (Submission - Rear-Naked Choke) Takanori Gomi - UFC Fight Night: Florian vs. Gomi (03/31/2010)
Win (Submission - Rear-Naked Choke) Clay Guida - UFC 107: Penn vs. Sanchez (12/12/2009)

Nunes last three fights:
Win (Split Decision) Mike Brown - UFC 125: Resolution (01/01/2011)
Win (Unanimous Decision) Tyler Toner - WEC 51: Aldo vs. Gamburyan (09/30/2010)
Win (Split Decision) Raphael Assuncao - WEC 49: Varner vs. Shalorus (06/20/2010)

Props: MMA Live

Fresh Faces: UFC 125 edition

UFC 125 rings in the New Year with a lightweight title match between champion Frankie Edgar and undefeated challenger Gray Maynard.

The card also features four fighters making their UFC debuts, including three WEC standouts. Meet them in this edition of Fresh Faces.

Name: Josh Grispi

Weight class: Featherweight

Fighting: Dustin Poirier

Record: 14-1 (6 (T)KOs, 7 submissions) for the WEC and various U.S. promotions

Recent body of work: Submitted LC Davis by first-round guillotine choke at "WEC 49: Varner vs. Shalorus" in June

Who he is: Grispi enters his UFC debut riding a 10-fight winning streak, including eight straight first-round finishes and a 4-0 mark in the WEC. Originally, Grispi was scheduled to face Erik Koch at WEC 52, but the UFC decided to grant Grispi a shot at the newly-crowned UFC featherweight champion, Jose Aldo instead. After Aldo was forced to withdraw from the bout with a back injury, Poirier became Grispi's new opponent.

Name: Dustin Poirier

Weight class: Featherweight

Fighting: Josh Grispi

Record: 8-1 (5 (T)KOs, 3 submissions) for the WEC and various promotions in the United States and Canada

Recent body of work: Defeated Zach Micklewright by TKO in just 0:53 at "WEC 52: Faber vs. Mizugaki" in November

Who he is: Poirier will step in to face Grispi after Grispi's original opponent, UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo, was forced to withdraw due to an injury. A Louisiana native, Poirier rebounded from his first career loss -- a decision to Danny Castillo -- with a 53-second TKO win over Micklewright in November, and will drop from lightweight to featherweight for the first time in his career.

Name: Diego Nunes

Weight class: Featherweight

Fighting: Mike Brown

Record: 15-1 (5 (T)KOs, 6 submissions) for the WEC and various Brazilian promotions

Recent body of work: Defeated Tyler Toner by unanimous decision at "WEC 51: Aldo vs. Gamburyan" in September

Who he is: Hailing from Brazil, Nunes entered the WEC having finished all 11 of his professional fights. After suffering his first career loss to LC Davis, Nunes rebounded with back-to-back victories in 2010 to run his WEC record to 4-1. Since entering the WEC, all five of Nunes' fights have gone to decision.

Name: Antonio McKee

Weight class: Lightweight

Fighting: Jacob Volkmann

Record: 25-3-2 (3 (T)KOs, 4 submissions) for various promotions in the United States, Canada and Mexico

Recent body of work: TKO'd Luciano Azevedo in the first round at "MFC 26: Retribution" in September

Who he is: The 40-year-old McKee has not lost a fight since dropping a decision to Karo Parisyan in 2003, a span that has lasted 15 fights (14-0-1). Long criticized for being a boring fighter (18 of his 25 wins have come by decision), McKee has finished his last two fights in the first round. In his most recent bout against Luciano, McKee stated that he would retire if he failed to finish the fight. He made good on his guarantee, blasting Luciano with elbows that forced a doctor stoppage.

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Mike Brown vs. Diego Nunes in the works for UFC 125

A featherweight bout between former WEC champion Mike Brown and Diego Nunes is in the works for UFC 125 on Jan 1.

Brown (24-6, 6-2 WEC) rebounded from a loss to Manvel Gamburyan with a quick TKO victory over Cole Province at WEC 51. The former champ is 2-1 since losing his title to Jose Aldo last November.

Nunes (15-1, 4-1 WEC) is currently on a two-fight win streak. Prior to entering the WEC, Nunes had finished all 11 of his professional fights. Since then, though, all five of Nunes' WEC fights have gone to decision.

Brown last three fights:
Win (TKO - Punches) Cole Province - WEC 51
Loss (KO - Punches) Manvel Gamburyan - WEC 48
Win (Submission - Rear-Naked Choke) Anthony Morrison - WEC 46

Nunes last three fights:
Win (Unanimous Decision) Tyler Toner - WEC 51
Win (Split Decision) Raphael Assuncao - WEC 49
Loss (Unanimous Decision) LC Davis - WEC 44

Props: MMA junkie