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What's the story?
News has broken that Tyson Pedro is set to face off against Ovince Saint Preux at UFC Singapore. The bout is scheduled to take place on June 23, at the Singapore Indoor Arena.
Other bouts that were confirmed earlier include Donald Cerrone vs Leon Edwards and a women's flyweight bout between Jessica-Rose Clark and Jessica Eye.
In case you didn’t know…
Ovince was on a three-fight win streak until he was derailed by Ilir Latifi at UFC on Fox 28. Having been finished by way of a guillotine choke in round one, it was a frustrating defeat for the 35-year-old to take, especially after impressive finishes prior to his encounter in January.
Meanwhile, Pedro himself is coming into this one off the back of an impressive performance over Saparbek Safarov, having finished him with a neat Kimura.
The heart of the matter
UFC is coming back to Asia after a successful stint in China and has officially declared it'll include annual events in the continent to provide world-class action to fight fans in more countries than ever before. The main event will feature Cowboy Cerrone, who is against an up-and-coming British fighter in Leon Edwards.
Confirmed bouts are as follows:
• Ovince Saint Preux will face rising Australian Tyson Pedro in the light heavyweight division.
• Flyweight Jessica Rose Clark vs. Jessica Eye
• Shinsho Anzai will face “The Celtic Kid” Jake Matthews in a welterweight bout.
• Matt Schnell will fight undefeated prospect Naoki Inoue in a flyweight match-up.
• Yan Xiaonan will face strawweight contender Nadia Kassem
• Jenel Lausa vs. Ashkan Mokhtarian
What's next?
As both fighters will look to stamp their authority in the Light Heavyweight division, this encounter promises to be an intriguing watch. Both were defeated previously by Latifi and Pedro should not expect this to be easy, especially against a seasoned fighter like St Preux.
Author's take
This is a really exciting bout. Ovince has been in the Octagon for a number of years now and is famous for his knockout finishes, as well as crafty submission moves. It'll be interesting to see how he fares against a young, hungry opponent in Pedro - who himself is a submission artist and excelled against Safarov last time out.
If he prevails here, it could propel him into the top ten rankings within the Light Heavyweight division. Elsewhere, there are some good fights on the card overall and with over two months left, there's still more to be added!
