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.
Herman (21-2-0) won his first 15 fights – all by knockout or submission – before suffering his first loss in an upset against Mu Bae Choi in early 2009. He has won six of seven fights since, with the lone defeat coming via disqualification due to an illegal knee in May 2010. Known for his sometimes reckless style, Herman is not afraid to take punches in order to deal out damage of his own, and he looked to be in trouble against Einemo before stopping him with a barrage of knees and punches.
Russow (14-1-0, 1 NC), who also works as a police officer, made a successful UFC debut against Justin McCully at UFC 102, but he did not compete for another nine months. Facing unbeaten prospect Todd Duffee, Russow was soundly beaten through two rounds before scoring a one-punch knockout in round three to cap off one of the better comeback victories of 2010. He has fought just once thus far in 2011, defeating Madsen by doctor stoppage after the second round of their UFC Fight Night 24 bout.
With both fighters earning wins in the Octagon, a victory for either could propel the winner into a bout with a top contender in the heavyweight division. A loss will send one fighter back into the middle of the heavyweight roster.
Grispi (14-3-0) picked up victories in 10 of his first 11 fights to earn a shot in the WEC. He would reign undefeated in the promotion, with wins over Mark Hominick, Micah Miller, Jens Pulver and L.C. Davis. The victories earned Grispi number one contender status for the UFC Featherweight Championship, but when champion José Aldo suffered an injury, Grispi took a fight with Dustin “The Diamond” Poirier at UFC 125. He was defeated by Poirier and most recently stopped by George Roop last month.
Grice (13-4-0) entered the UFC in 2007 with a perfect 8-0 record, but lost his promotional debut against Terry Etim. He would go on to defeat Jason Black before losing a controversial fight against Matt Veach where questionable refereeing played a significant factor. He was released after a loss at UFC 100 and dropped down to 145 pounds. After four wins outside of the promotion, Grice returned to the UFC just over two weeks ago and was defeated by TKO late in the first round.
Once the next challenger for the 145-pound title, Grispi now finds himself potentially one loss away from receiving his release from the UFC, but Grice’s second tenure with the promotion could also come to an abrupt end with a second straight loss.
UFC 136 is targeted for October 8th at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. The event is expected to be headlined by a middleweight bout between Chael Sonnen and “All American” Brian Stann.
(Photo Credit: Sherdog.com)