The Ultimate Fighting Championship® (UFC®) organization is proud to confirm the remaining bouts on the historic final card of the year – UFC 92: THE ULTIMATE 2008, live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday, December 27, 2008. The already stacked fight card is rounded out with a brilliant batch of exciting mixed martial artists.
It's a matchup between two highly-touted middleweight newcomers as New Jersey's Mike Massenzio (6'2"/185 lbs., fighting out of Paterson, N.J.) meets The Ultimate Fighter® Season 7 finalist CB Dollaway (6'2"/185 lbs., fighting out of Tempe, Ariz.). This will not be the first time these two have met in competition. Dollaway, a former NCAA Division I wrestler and Ohio-born fighter, defeated the Teaneck native at the Junior college wrestling nationals.
If Lebanon-born fighter Mostapha Al Turk (6'2"/242 lbs., fighting out of London, England) is to win his UFC debut it will have to come against a brand name in the heavyweight division. Cheick Kongo (6'4"/240 lbs., fighting out of Paris, France) looks to improve his UFC record to 5-2 when he faces the 35-year-old heavyweight.
A very well respected ground fighter, Dean Lister (6'1"/185 lbs., fighting out of San Diego, Calif.) owns UFC submission victories over Alessio Sakara and grappling wiz Jeremy Horn; but the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt will have to excel in all areas if he is to beat perpetual contender Yushin Okami (6'2"/185 lbs., fighting out of Kanagawa, Japan), who holds a 6-1 UFC record with one loss coming against former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin.
For an exciting match in the heavyweight division, look no further than Weesp, Holland's Antoni Hardonk (6'4"/245 lbs., fighting out of Amsterdam and Los Angeles, Calif.). The Dutch kickboxing specialist is on a two-fight win streak with devastating stoppages over Colin Robinson and Eddie Sanchez. But now the 32-year-old turns his attention to Celina, Ohio's Mike Wessel (6'0"/260 lbs., fighting out of Little Rock, Ark.). A former assistant strength and conditioning coach for the University of Arkansas, Wessel has won eight of his first nine professional bouts.
Looking to rebound from a loss to Franklin at UFC 88, Loveland, Ohio's Matt Hamill (6'1"/205 lbs., fighting out of Utica, N.Y.) will put his top tier wrestling ability and improved striking up against former three-time NCAA Division I wrestler and Minot, North Dakota native Reese Andy (5'10"/205 lbs., fighting out of Renton, Wa.).
One of the few men to ever beat current UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva, welterweight Ryo Chonan (5'9"/170 lbs., fighting out of Yamagata City, Japan) always looks to dazzle the crowd. Chonan is coming off a split decision victory against Roan Carneiro and will try to extend the win streak to two when he faces Los Angeles, California's Brad Blackburn (5'10"/170 lbs., fighting out of Olympia, Wa.), who earned a second-round TKO in his UFC debut.
It's a matchup between two decorated kickboxers as Pat Barry (5'11"/235 lbs, fighting out of Milwaukee, Wis.) faces Dan Evensen (6'3"/250 lbs., fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev.). Originally from Norway, the 10-3 Evensen will look to put the first blemish on the New Orleans fighter's 3-0 record.
Tickets for UFC 92: THE ULTIMATE 2008 are still on sale and will be available at the MGM Grand Garden Arena Box Office, all Ticketmaster Ticket Centers, Charge-By-Phone at (702) 474-4000 or online at ticketmaster.com.
UFC 92: THE ULTIMATE 2008 is available live on pay-per-view at 10 p.m. EST/7 p.m. PST on iN DEMAND, DIRECTV, DISH Network, TVN, Bell ExpressVu, Shaw Communications and Viewer's Choice Canada for a suggested retail price of $44.95 for standard definition or high-definition broadcasts (where available).
For more information on UFC 92 and the Ultimate Fighting Championship, visit UFC.com.