Ramsey Nijem
Lightweight fight added to UFC’s year-end card
In a turnaround right up there with Donald Cerrone, Ramsey Nijem apparently doesn’t want to waste any time.
The Season 13 runner-up on “The Ultimate Fighter,” Nijem will return at UFC 141 next month against Anthony Njokuani. MMA Junkie was first to report news of the planned lightweight bout. UFC 141 is scheduled for Dec. 30 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas and will feature a heavyweight No. 1 contenders bout between former UFC champion Brock Lesnar and former Strikeforce champ Alistair Overeem, making his UFC debut.
Nijem (5-2, 1-1 UFC) is just two weeks removed from his last fight, a unanimous decision victory over Danny Downes – his first victory in the UFC. Nijem suffered a knockout loss to Tony Ferguson in the TUF 13 Finale in June, his official UFC debut. His win over Downes was a dominant one, including scores of 30-25 and 30-26.
Njokuani (14-5, 1-1 UFC), a former star in the WEC before the merger with the UFC – including three straight Knockout of the Night wins in that promotion – will return for the first time since a July win over Andre Winner at UFC 132. Prior to that, Njokuani had lost three of four fights, including his UFC debut, a unanimous decision loss to Edson Barboza at UFC 128 in March.
The addition of the lightweight bout gets the UFC 141 card closer to completion with a total of 10 bouts. Aside from the main event heavyweight fight, the co-main event will feature a lightweight fight between Cerrone and Nate Diaz. Cerrone will be fighting for the fifth time in 2011 and is already 4-0 with three bonus awards, making a strong case for Fighter of the Year consideration. In addition, UFC 141 will feature a welterweight bout between former title challenger Jon Fitch and Johny Hendricks.