Mitch Clarke vs. Anton Kuivanen Booked for UFC 149 in Calgary

Lightweights slated for fight on July 21 card

The UFC’s first trip to Calgary, Alberta, Canada, continues to increase its guest list.

A lightweight bout between Mitch Clarke and Anton Kuivanen has found its way onto the UFC 149 card in July. UFC officials on Friday announced the fight, which is expected to be a part of the preliminary card.

UFC 149 is set for July 21 at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary and will be the promotion’s first visit to Canada’s third largest city. The pay-per-view will be headlined by featherweight champion Jose Aldo, though his opponent is not yet set. The preliminary card fights for the event are likely to air on a combination of FX and the UFC’s Facebook page.

Clarke (9-1, 0-1 UFC), who has fought exclusively in his home country of Canada for his first 10 fights, made his UFC debut in December at UFC 140 in Toronto, but he fell victim to a second-round TKO by the also-debuting John Cholish. That loss was the first of his career after starting 9-0 with six submissions. Clarke trains in Alberta, about three hours up the road from Calgary in Edmonton.

Kuivanen (16-5, 0-1 UFC) also is coming off a loss in his UFC debut. At UFC on Fuel TV: Sanchez vs. Ellenberger in February, the Finland-based lightweight lost a unanimous decision to Justin Salas. Kuivanen signed with the UFC on the strength of nine straight wins in Finland, including winning the lightweight title for the Cage promotion. Twelve of his 16 wins have come by stoppage.

The Clarke-Kuivanen fight joins a pair of bouts already announced for the card between Bryan Caraway and Mitch Gagnon and Court McGee and Nick Ring. The Calgary event will be the UFC’s first in Canada this year, but UFC 152 is already booked for Toronto on Sept. 22 and UFC 154 will return to Montreal on Nov. 17.

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