At long last, the Season 23 winner of “The Ultimate Fighter” will return to the octagon this fall.
“TUF 23” winner Tatiana Suarez (4-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) will take on Brazil’s Viviane Pereira (13-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) in a fight between unbeaten strawweights at UFC Fight Night 120. The booking first was reported by Brazilian news outlet Combate.com, though it has not yet been formally announced by the UFC.
UFC Fight Night 120 takes place Nov. 11 at Ted Constant Convocation Center in Norfolk, Va. The event airs on FS1 following early prelims on UFC Fight Pass.
Suarez submitted Amanda Bobby Cooper, who was won of her teammates under coach Claudia Gadelha, to win “TUF 23” in July 2016. She picked up a $50,000 bonus check for her first-round D’Arce choke and stayed perfect as a pro at 4-0. But the 26-year-old Californian, who is a former Team USA wrestling standout and onetime Olympic hopeful who several years ago fought and beat thyroid cancer, has been on the sideline since winning the show.
Pereira kept her perfect record intact in June when she took a unanimous decision from Jamie Moyle at uFC 212 in her home country. Prior to that, she won her promotional debut at UFC 206 this past December with a split decision over Valerie Letourneau in Toronto. That bout was her first time fighting outside her native Brazil. The fight against Suarez will be her first time competing in the United States.
With the addition, the latest UFC Fight Night 120 card now includes:
For more on UFC Fight Night 120, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.
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