UFC 176 co-main event set with Gegard Mousasi vs. 'Jacare' Souza
The UFC’s August return to Los Angeles now has its co-main event: a key middleweight matchup between a pair of former Strikeforce champions.
Ronaldo Souza (20-3 MMA, 3-0 UFC) is set to take on Gegard Mousasi (35-4-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) at UFC 176. UFC officials announced the new booking late Tuesday after an initial report from the Los Angeles Daily News.
UFC 176 takes place Aug. 2 at Staples Center in Los Angeles. The event’s main card airs live on pay-per-view following prelims on FOX Sports 1 and UFC Fight Pass. In the main event, featherweight champion Jose Aldo defends his title in a rematch against Chad Mendes.
Mousasi won the duo’s first meeting via upkick knockout in the 2008 DREAM middleweight grand prix final. It earned him the now-defunct promotion’s middleweight belt.
Mousasi is now coming off a main-event win over Mark Munoz at UFC Fight Night 41 in Berlin less than three weeks ago. There, he choked out Munoz in the first round to get back in the win column after a five-round unanimous decision loss to Lyoto Machida at UFC Fight Night 36 in February. Mousasi was Strikeforce’s light heavyweight champion, but lost the belt in his first title defense.
Souza won his sixth straight fight and stayed perfect in the UFC when he took a decision from Francis Carmont at UFC Fight Night 36 in Brazil. His first two UFC wins were first-round stoppages – a submission of Chris Camozzi in May 2013 and a TKo of Yushin Okami in September. “Jacare†won the Strikeforce middleweight title against TIm Kennedy in August 2010 and defended it against Robbie Lawler in January 2011. But he lost the belt to Luke Rockhold later that year before going on his current six-fight tear, which includes five stoppages.
With the addition of the co-main event, the latest UFC 176 card includes:
Champ Jose Aldo vs. Chad Mendes – for featherweight title
Gegard Mousasi vs. Ronaldo Souza
Danny Castillo vs. Tony Ferguson
Shayna Baszler vs. Bethe Correia
Jussier Formiga vs. Zach Makovsky
Fabricio Camoes vs. Gray Maynard
Walmir Lazaro vs. James Vick
Derek Brunson vs. Lorenz Larkin
Bobby Green vs. Abel Trujillo
