Rich Attonito
Welterweight bout completes 12-fight Toronto card
The 12-fight UFC 140 card is once again complete with the addition of a welterweight bout on the preliminary card.
Rich Attonito will now meet promotional newcomer Jake Hecht on the show, which takes place Dec. 10 in Toronto. MMA Junkie was first to report news of the fight, and sources close to the bout on Thursday confirmed the booking to Heavy MMA.
Attonitio (10-4, 3-1 UFC) was originally scheduled for a fight against Toronto native Claude Patrick. But an injury forced Rory MacDonald out of a fight against Brian Ebersole, and Patrick moved up the card in MacDonald’s place, leaving Attonito in need of an opponent.
Attonito, a Season 11 contestant on “The Ultimate Fighter,” dropped from middleweight to welterweight for his last fight, a unanimous decision victory over Daniel Roberts at UFC on Versus 4 in June.
Hecht (10-2) has won three straight, all in 2011, and holds a notable win over Bellator and TUF 13 vet Charlie Rader, who then went on a six-fight winning streak. Hecht, a Missouri native, trains at the new gym run by former longtime Matt Hughes trainer Marc Fiore in central Illinois.
UFC 140 will take place at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, the UFC’s second 2011 show in Canada’s largest city. UFC 129 in April set North American MMA attendance and gate records at the Rogers Centre. The pay-per-view will be headlined by a light heavyweight title fight between champion Jon Jones and former champion Lyoto Machida.