UFC’s March return to London adds Barnatt-Nilsson, Scott-da Silva
The UFC’s London return has a pair of middleweight fights added to the bill for late winter.
England’s Luke Barnatt (7-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) will take on Sweden’s Mats Nilsson (11-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC), the latest Cage Warriors veteran to sign with the UFC. And Brit Brad Scott (9-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC) will welcome promotional newcomer Claudio Henrique da Silva (9-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) to the UFC.
UFC officials announced the new fight bookings on Tuesday.
“UFC Fight Night London: Gustafsson vs. Manuwa†takes place March 8 at London’s O2 Arena. The card, which has yet to have broadcast plans revealed, features a light heavyweight bout between recent title challenger Alexander Gustafsson and unbeaten British standout Jimi Manuwa.
Barnatt, who competed on Season 17 of “The Ultimate Fighter,†try to stay perfect. At the TUF 17 Finale, he outpointed Collin Hart for his first UFC win. In October at UFC Fight Night 30 in Manchester, he won for his home fans when he submitted Andrew Craig in the second round. That bout picked up “Fight of the Night†honors.
Nilsson will make his UFC debut after back-to-back wins for Cage Warriors this year. At Cage Warriors 59 in September, he stopped Denniston Sutherland in the second round with a TKO. That came on the heels of his decision win over Chris Scott at Cage Warriors 53 in April. Overall, the Swede is 3-0 under the Cage Warriors banner. He’s won seven of eight, with five stoppages and the lone loss in that stretch at the hands of current UFC fighter Tor Troeng.
Scott picked up his first UFC win earlier this fall at UFC Fight Night 30. That got the “TUF: Smashes†veteran into the win column in the promotion after losing to Australia’s Robert Whittaker in that show’s final at UFC on FX 6 a year ago.
Da Silva has won nine straight fights since losing his first pro bout in 2007. Since then 31-year-old has eight finishes in nine fights, including six by submission. In October 2012, his most recent fight, the London-based Brazilian, outpointed UFC vet Xavier Foupa-Pokam.
With the additions, the latest UFC European Tour in London lineup includes:
Alexander Gustafsson vs. Jimi Manuwa
Melvin Guillard vs. Ross Pearson
Ian McCall vs. Brad Pickett
Cyrille Diabate vs. Ilir Latifi
Omari Akhmedov vs. Gunnar Nelson
Igor Araujo vs. Danny Mitchell
Luke Barnatt vs. Mats Nilsson
Brad Scott vs. Claudio Henrique da Silva
