A light heavyweight matchup originally expected to take place at this past August's UFC 133 event will now take place at UFC 141, as Alexander Gustafsson (12-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) meets Vladimir Matyushenko (25-5 MMA, 7-3 UFC).
UFC officials on Wednesday evening announced the matchup.
Featuring a heavyweight headliner between former UFC champion Brock Lesnar and former Strikeforce titleholder Alistair Overeem, UFC 141 takes place Dec. 30 at Las Vegas' MGM Grand Garden Arena.
It's currently unclear if the bout will feature on the evening's pay-per-view main card.
Gustafsson returns to action for the first time since TKOing Matt Hamill into retirement when "The Hammer" stepped in for an injured Matyushenko at UFC 133. Prior to that win, the 24-year-old Swedish prospect posted back-to-back submission victories (over Cyrille Diabate and James Te Huna). His lone career loss came to unbeaten contender Phil Davis at UFC 112, which followed a KO win over Jared Hamann in his late-2009 octagon debut.
Meanwhile, Matyushenko looks to build on the strength of an impressive victory notched earlier this year. "The Janitor" needed just 20 seconds to drop Jason Brilz at April's UFC 129 event, a result that lasted just four seconds more than a 1998 win over the infamous Anthony Macias. With a 4-1 in mark in his current UFC stint, Matyushenko has won five of his past six overall outings.
Source - MMAJunkie
