NEWS: UFC 129 Official with 12 Bouts
The dance card is now full for UFC 129, as the promotion Tuesday ratified three rumored contests for its first trip to the Canadian province of Ontario.
Now greenlit for the show is a co-headlining featherweight title bout between champion Jose Aldo and Canadian striker Mark Hominick. Also confirmed by the promotion was a light heavyweight tilt featuring former champions Randy Couture and Lyoto Machida, and a welterweight duel between Nate Diaz and Rory MacDonald.
The 12-fight card, which takes place April 30 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, will be headlined by a welterweight title fight pitting longtime champion Georges St. Pierre against the highly-regarded Jake Shields.
A dominant champion, Aldo possess knockout power in all four limbs. Since beginning his stint under the Zuffa banner in 2008, “Junior” has annihilated all comers, winning five straight fights inside the blue cage of World Extreme Cagefighting before demolishing then-champion Mike Thomas Brown at WEC 44 in 2009. The once-beaten Brazilian has since defended his title twice, dominating both former champion Urijah Faber and powerful judoka Manny Gamburyan in 2010.
In Hominick, Aldo faces an accurate puncher with tremendous footwork and speed. An Ontario native, Hominick has won five straight fights since dropping his WEC debut to Josh Grispi in 2008. Prior to cutting to 145 pounds and joining the WEC, the Canadian went 2-0 as a lightweight in the UFC in 2006. A former TKO featherweight champion, Hominick most recently dispatched of training partner George Roop at UFC “Fight for the Troops 2,” knocking Roop out in just 88 seconds.
A former five-time UFC champion, Randy Couture is perhaps the most recognizable name in all of mixed martial arts. “The Natural” began his career in 1997 and owns career victories over such notables as Maurice Smith, Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz. Couture will enter the Machida bout on a three-fight win streak, having most recently toppled boxer-turned-MMA fighter James Toney at UFC 118.
After going undefeated in his first 16 pro fights, Machida has lost back-to-back contests. The Brazilian karate black belt was first knocked out in a rematch with former Pride Fighting Championships standout Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, losing the light heavyweight title in the process. His last appearance in the cage also resulted in defeat, as another former champion, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, earned a split decision victory over Machida at UFC 123 in November.
The younger brother of Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz, 25-year-old Nate has won two of his last three fights. He was bested in his most recent outing, however, as Korean import Dong Hyun Kim was awarded a close split decision over the Californian. A brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Diaz holds nine of his 13 career wins by submission.
One of the sport’s brightest prospects, MacDonald is only 21 years old. After a successful UFC debut against Mike Guymon one year ago, MacDonald fell just short in his sophomore effort with the promotion, losing by third-round TKO to former WEC champion Carlos Condit with only seven seconds left in the fight.
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