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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
A welterweight bout between Matt Hughes and Ricardo Almeida is in the works for UFC 117 on August 7 in California, according to ESPN.com MMA Live reporter Franklin McNeil.
In a post on his Twitter page, McNeil stated, "It's not official, but Matt Hughes-Ricardo Almeida appears headed to UFC 117 in Oakland, Calif."
Hughes is coming off a victory over Renzo Gracie earlier this month at UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi. The 36 year old former Welterweight Champion still has multiple fights left on his UFC contract, and has stated he's looking for interesting fights.
This one with Almeida certainly qualifies, as the highly decorated third degree Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt marks a dangerous stylistic match up for Hughes. He made a successful debut at welterweight in March, submitting Matt Brown in the second round at UFC 111.
UFC 117 is expected to take place from the Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., headlined by a Middleweight Championship bout between Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen.
Penick's Analysis: This is a great welterweight fight, but one in which I'd favor Almeida. Hughes can certainly still work his top game and ground and pound, but Almeida is so good on the ground I think he'll be able to submit Hughes in this one. The weight cut affected him negatively in the Brown fight, but if he prepares better for this fight it shouldn't be as much of an issue. This is a good fight, though, and makes a good addition to this first event in Oakland.
RELATED STORY: UFC NEWS: UFC on Versus 2 now coming to Utah on August 1, UFC 117 heading to northern California on August 7: [CLICK TO READ FULL ARTICLE]
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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