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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
Two more fights have been added to the UFC Fight Night 24 event, coming to Seattle, Wash. on March 26, as separate reports from MMAJunkie.com and MMAWeekly.com state that a welterweight bout between Amir Sadollah and Duane "Bang" Ludwig, as well as a middleweight bout between Aaron Simpson and Mario Miranda, are coming to the event.
Sadollah, the winner of The Ultimate Fighter's seventh season, has fought his entire professional career inside the UFC's Octagon, going 4-2 in six fights. He most recently bounced back from a loss to Dong Hyun Kim with a decision win over Peter Sobotta in Germany at UFC 122.
Ludwig, a ten year veteran of the sport with five times as many fights as Sadollah under his belt, made his return to the UFC in January after a four year absence from the organization. He went 8-5 in between UFC stints, but dropped his first two fights back in the Octagon in 2010. However, a split decision win over Nick Osipczak at UFC 122 saved his spot in the organization.
Simpson enters the bout with Miranda having lost two straight. His loss to Chris Leben at The Ultimate Fighter 11 finale was the first loss of his career, but he added a second when he dropped a decision to Mark Munoz last month at UFC 123.
Both he and Miranda are likely fighting for their spot on the UFC's roster, as Miranda himself holds just a 1-2 mark in the organization. Dropping his debut fight by TKO to Gerald Harris, Miranda delivered a similar finish to David Loiseau at UFC 115 in Vancouver. However, he was handed a second loss by Demian Maia by decision in August.
UFC Fight Night 24 is expected to air live on Spike TV, headlined by a light heavyweight bout between Tito Ortiz and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira.
Penick's Analysis: Both fights are set up to help clear roster space for the UFC. Unless there are some spectacular performances out of them, Ludwig, Simpson and Miranda all may be up for release with a loss. Sadollah, as an Ultimate Fighter winner, will have more leeway with the UFC, but he can't afford too many losses himself. Ludwig is a highly experienced fighter who does have some left in the tank, so he'll provide another tough challenge for Sadollah, but that should be a good fight at 170 lbs. Miranda-Simpson should be highly competitive as well, but the loser will either have lost three straight, or lost three of four, so they're likely on their way out after this event.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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