Dustin Poirier vs. Rani Yahya in the Works for UFC 131

A featherweight bout between Dustin Poirier and Rani Yahya is in the works for UFC 131 on June 11 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Poirier (9-1, 1-0 UFC) recently played spoiler in his UFC debut, defeating former number-one contender Josh Grispi by unanimous decision at UFC 125. The fight also marked Poirier's debut at featherweight, after spending the first nine fights of his career at lightweight.

Yahya (16-6, 1-0 UFC) also made a successful UFC debut in his last bout, defeating former featherweight champion Mike Brown by unanimous decision at UFC: Fight for the Troops 2. The win snapped a two-fight skid for Yahya, who came to the UFC with a 4-4 mark in the WEC as a bantamweight.

Poirier last three fights:
Win (Unanimous Decision) Josh Grispi - UFC 125: Resolution (01/01/2011)
Win (TKO - Punches) Zach Micklewright - WEC 52: Faber vs. Mizugaki (11/11/2010)
Loss (Unanimous Decision) Danny Castillo - WEC 50: Cruz vs. Benavidez (08/18/2010)

Yahya last three fights:
Win (Unanimous Decision) Mike Brown - UFC: Fight for the Troops 2 (01/22/2011)
Loss (Unanimous Decision) Takeya Mizugaki - WEC 48: Aldo vs. Faber (04/24/2010)
Loss (TKO - Punches) Joseph Benavidez - WEC 45: Cerrone vs. Ratcliff (12/19/2009)

Props: Heavy.com

Fresh Faces: UFC Fight for the Troops 2 Edition

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Every UFC event, TapouTVTC.com looks at the fighters making their promotional debuts. Three such fighters will make their debuts this Saturday at "UFC: Fight for the Troops 2," including two making the transition from the WEC. Meet them in this edition of "Fresh Faces."

Courtesy of Tatame.com

Name: Rani Yahya

Weight class: Bantamweight

Fighting: Mike Brown

Record: 15-6 (14 submissions) for the WEC and other promotions

Recent body of work: Has lost two straight fights, to Joseph Benavidez (December 2009) and Takeya Mizugaki (April 2010), in the WEC

Who he is: A Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, Yahya won the prestigious Abu Dhabi Submission Championships in 2007. Those ground credentials are reflective of Yahya's MMA style, where 14 of his 15 wins have come by submission, including three straight Submission of the Night bonuses in the WEC. Overall, Yahya went 4-4 in the WEC, including a championship loss against then-champion Chase Beebe.

Courtesy of MMAjunkie.com

Name: Chris Cariaso

Weight class: Bantamweight

Fighting: Will Campuzano

Record: 10-2 (2 (T)KOs, 2 submissions) for the WEC, Strikeforce and other promotions

Recent body of work: Was submitted in the first round by Renan Barao at WEC 53 in December

Who he is: Another carry-over from the WEC/ UFC merger, Cariaso saw his recent six-fight win streak derailed by Barao at WEC 53. The California-based fighter had been 10-1 prior to the loss, fighting for EliteXC and Strikeforce before signing with the WEC.

Name: Willamy Freire

Weight class: Lightweight

Fighting: Waylon Lowe

Record: 17-3 (2 (T)KOs, 9 submissions) for Shooto and other promotions

Recent body of work: Defeated Yusuke Endo by split decision at "The Way of Shooto 3" in May to defend the Shooto Welterweight Championship.

Who he is: Hailing from Brazil, Freire enters the UFC riding an 11-fight win streak, and has not been defeated since dropping a decision to Hacran Dias in 2007. Freire captured the vacant Shooto welterweight (154 lbs.) title with a TKO doctor stoppage victory over Kenichiro Togashi in October 2009, then defeated Mikael Lahdesmaki in a non-title fight before successfully defending the belt against Endo in May.






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