Former top contender Evan Dunham will look to get back on track when he welcomes TUF 13 alum Shamar Bailey to the UFC lightweight division on September 17th. Dunham and Bailey have verbally agreed to face off at UFC Fight Night 25: “Battle on the Bayou” in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Dunham was on the cusp of a UFC title shot until he suffered a controversial Split Decision loss to former champion Sean Sherk last September. He was then brutally stopped by Melvin Guillard in January. Bailey competed as a welterweight during TUF 13 filming and won his Octagon debut in June.

Dunham (11-2-0) won his first 11 fights, including big UFC victories over Marcus Aurelio and Tyson Griffin, before suffering the disputed loss to Sherk in a hotly-contested bout at UFC 119. He had looked to rebound from his first professional setback in the main event of UFC: “Fight For The Troops 2,” but was soundly beaten and eventually stopped by knees from Guillard. Now facing a tough road back to contention, Dunham will try to take the first step with a victory over Bailey, who drops down to 155.

Bailey (12-3-0) opened his career with seven straight wins before being quickly stopped by Strikeforce prospect Roger Bowling. He rebounded with four wins, including a Strikeforce victory over John Kolosci, before encountering a tough two-fight losing skid last year. Bailey then took part in Season 13 of The Ultimate Fighter. While he did not win, he received a fight at the TUF 13 Finale last month and defeated Ryan McGillivray. The bout with Dunham will be Bailey’s first in the lightweight division of the UFC.

UFC Fight Night 25: “Battle on the Bayou” takes place on September 17th at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana. The event will be headlined by a welterweight bout between Jake Shields and Jake “The Juggernaut” Ellenberger.

(Photo Credit: Sherdog.com)