UFC Fight Night 106 adds Alex Nicholson vs. Paulo Henrique Costa

Alex Nicholson will fight a UFC newcomer (of sorts) in his next bout.

UFC officials today announced Nicholson (7-3 MMA, 1-2 UFC) will meet fellow middleweight Paulo Henrique Costa (8-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) at UFC Fight Night 106.

UFC Fight Night 106 takes place March 11 at Centro de Formacao Olimpica do Nordeste in Fortaleza, Ceara, Brazil. The card airs on FS1 following early prelims on UFC Fight Pass, though the bout order hasn’t been finalized.

Nicholson, a 26-year-old American Top Team-Orlando fighter, was riding a five-fight winning streak before signing with the UFC. He suffered a submission loss to Misha Cirkunov in his 2016 promotional debut before rebounding for a first-round knockout win over Devin Clark. After being cleared of a domestic-violence charge, he returned to the cage in November but suffered a decision loss to Sam Alvey in his most recent bout.

Costa, who appeared on “The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 3” in 2013, turned pro in 2012 and has fought in his native country with Brazilian promotions such as Jungle Fight and Face to Face. The 25-year-old, who now makes his official UFC debut, has posted stoppages in all eight of his pro bouts, with seven knockouts and one submission. All of them have come in the first round.

The latest UFC Fight Night 106 card includes:

• Vitor Belfort vs. Kelvin Gastelum
• Edson Barboza vs. Beneil Dariush
• Mauricio Rua vs. Gian Villante
• Paulo Henrique Costa vs. Alex Nicholson
• Bethe Correia vs. Marion Reneau
• Josh Burkman vs. Michel Prazeres

For more on UFC Fight Night 106, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.