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| UFC (file photo) |
By Ivan Saldajeno
MANILA--While no Filipino has been announced for a fight at UFC Fight Night Philippines 2 yet, an MMA fighter familiar to the local fans will take centerstage.
The UFC announced on Saturday that Jon Tuck will make his return trip to the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay to battle Mehdi Baghdad in one of the undercards to the BJ Penn-Ricardo Lamas showdown on Oct. 15.
The Guamanian fighter first set foot in the Philippines via PXC 28 at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig on Nov. 26, 2011, knocking out Tristan Arenal.
He made his return to the country in the UFC's first fight card at the MOA Arena, scoring a rear-naked choke submission win over Bang Tae-Hyun, which was eventually named the "Performance of the Night".
Apart from the said matches, Tuck first became known to the Filipino MMA community by dealing Eduard Folayang his first loss by a eight-second knockout in Saipan in 2009. Folayang has since blossomed to a prized fighter who is now preparing for his One lightweight title fight against Shinya Aoki in November.
[Related Story: Folayang guns for One lightweight title against Japanese champ]
This time, Tuck looks to bounce back from a split decision defeat to Josh Emmett last May against Baghdad, who also came from a split loss to John Makdeesi last July.
Also, the supporting bout to the Penn-Lamas headliner was announced as Derrick Lewis collides with Marcin Tybura in a heavyweight showdown.
Follow him on Twitter: @IvanSaldajeno
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