UFC Lightweight Champion Frankie “The Answer” Edgar will indeed face Gray “The Bully” Maynard for a third time. The bout, which was originally planned for UFC 130, will now take place at UFC 136 on October 8th in Houston, Texas. MMAFighting.com first reported on the fight today.

Edgar suffered his first and only loss to date in the first bout with Maynard back at UFC Fight Night 13 in 2008 and looked to be seconds away from defeat in the January 1st rematch this year. However, he battled back and managed to win enough rounds to earn a Draw on the judges’ scorecards.

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Submission specialists Demian Maia and Jorge Santiago will square off in a middleweight matchup at UFC 136 on October 8th in Houston, Texas. The bout was first reported by Brazilian news site iG.com.br today. Both fighters will look to rebound from losses in their most recent fights in the UFC.

Maia challenged unsuccessfully for the UFC Middleweight Championship last April, but earned a pair of decision wins before the end of the year. He was upset by Mark Munoz last month, however, and will now face off with former Sengoku champ Santiago, who lost in his May return to the UFC.

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Canadian welterweight prospect Jordan “Young Gun” Mein is the latest addition to the Strikeforce roster. The promotion announced Mein’s signing late Thursday night on its official Twitter account. At just 21 years of age, Mein has won 14 of his last 16 fights and holds 19 stoppage victories.

Mein, who has maintained a very active fighting schedule since debuting in June 2006, rose to fame over the past year after fights with UFC veterans Jason High, Joe Riggs and Josh Burkman. Mein defeated the latter two fighters and decisioned DREAM champion Marius Zaromskis last month.

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Two more fights have been announced for UFC 136 in Houston, Texas. The event, which is targeted for October 8th, will feature a heavyweight clash between Dave “Pee-Wee” Herman and Mike Russow. Featherweights Josh “The Fluke” Grispi and Matt “The Real One” Grice will also square off.

The UFC announced verbal agreements for both fights late tonight. Herman won his Octagon debut at UFC 131 by stopping John Olav Einemo in the second round of an all-out war. Russow defeated Jon Madsen in March and sports a 3-0 record in the UFC since his promotional debut two years ago.

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Injuries have claimed another victim on the UFC 133 card, as Vladimir “The Janitor” Matyushenko has been forced out of his light heavyweight bout with Alexander “The Mauler” Gustafsson due to an undisclosed injury. Matt “The Hammer” Hamill has stepped in to face Gustafsson on the August 6th card.

The UFC announced the latest change to the embattled event today. Hamill most recently dropped an uninspiring decision to former champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, but had won five straight before the loss. Gustafsson has won two fights in a row since suffering his lone career defeat last April.

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Unbeaten heavyweight prospect Matt Mitrone will face his toughest test to date when he battles fellow striker Cheick Kongo at UFC 137 on October 29th. The targeted matchup was first reported by ESPN.com today. Both fighters are coming off of knockout victories at UFC Live 4 in June.

Mitrione stopped Christian Morecraft in the second round of their June bout and has won five times inside the Octagon. Kongo, meanwhile, rallied back from the brink of defeat to knock out Pat “HD” Barry in the main event of the UFC Live 4 card and is unbeaten in his last three UFC appearances.

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A leg injury has forced Japanese veteran Hayato “Mach” Sakurai out of his rematch against DREAM Welterweight Champion Marius “The Whitemare” Zaromskis on Saturday in Tokyo, Japan. Sakurai has been replaced on the card by Eiji Ishikawa. News of the change was made official today.

Sakurai had looked to avenge his stoppage loss to Zaromskis from just over two years ago, but will now be forced to watch from the sidelines due to the untimely injury. Ishikawa now enters the bout on just two days’ notice as a significant underdog, but he has won seven of his last nine fights.

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A bout between 2006 PRIDE Open Weight Grand Prix Champion Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipović and former IFL champion Roy “Big Country” Nelson is in the works for UFC 137 on October 29th in Las Vegas, Nevada. Croatian sports site Gol.hr first reported on the heavyweight matchup earlier today.

Both fighters are currently in the midst of two-fight losing streaks and a third straight defeat could send the loser packing from the UFC. Filipović has struggled inside the Octagon, winning just four of his nine UFC fights, while Nelson is coming off of a lopsided loss to Frank Mir at UFC 130 in May.

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