UFC
UFC on Fox 3 headlined by Miller-Diaz; Pat Barry vs. Lavar Johnson added to main card
Feb 2, 2012 - 9:45:21 AM UFC on Fox 3 headlined by Miller-Diaz; Pat Barry vs. Lavar Johnson added to main card

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

The UFC is going a different route for their third event on Fox this May, as they are bringing several action packed match-ups to the May 5 main card after three lackluster decisions last Saturday night.

The lightweight bout already announced in Jim Miller vs. Nate Diaz had initially not been slated as the main event, but the fight will indeed headline the card from the Izod Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey. That fight will also now be contested as a five round bout, and the winner will potentially earn a title fight, or at least a number one contender bout.

Additionally, the UFC announced that a very entertaining heavyweight matchup between Pat Barry and Lavar Johnson will join the night's main card.

Miller gets his second straight headlining slot after delivering big time in his last bout. After a loss to Ben Henderson last August that put Henderson on course for his own title shot, Miller was booked against Melvin Guillard at UFC on FX 1 last month. Miller took full advantage of the position, submitting Guillard in the first round.

Diaz moves into this fight after two excellent performances over Takanori Gomi and Donald Cerrone since returning to the lightweight division. The Ultimate Fighter season five winner has struggled with consistency in his UFC career, but he hopes to finally make a run at the title with this stretch.

Barry bounced back into the UFC's good graces on the UFC on FX 1 card, showing off an improved ground game to defend against Christian Morecraft's submission attempts. After surviving on the ground, he dropped Morecraft with a huge left and knocked him out cold with follow up strikes on the ground.

Johnson transitioned over from Strikeforce and made his UFC debut on Saturday's UFC on Fox 2 undercard, and made a big statement by knocking out Joey Beltran.

Penick's Analysis: The UFC is going for a completely different strategy for this third Fox show, and it's going to absolutely be a gamble. The Miller-Diaz fight is a fantastic lightweight fight, and five rounds of those two competing is a salivating prospect, but the name value isn't there as a main event on Fox. After a Heavyweight Championship fight and a former Champion trying to get back to a title fight, this is a step down from a name value standpoint. But they're looking to showcase the action side of things for this card, and both Miller-Diaz and Barry-Johnson have the potential to deliver on that front in a big way.