Two Canadians set to fight on the stacked UFC 119 card

By MIKE JOHNSTON

UFC matchmaker extraordinaire Joe Silva has been a busy man of late. On the heals of a successful UFC 116 event, the organization has announced several upcoming fights, and two prominent Canadian fighters will take part in the promising UFC 119 card. Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia native T.J. Grant will take on Julio Paulino in a preliminary welterweight matchup, while Winipeg’s Joe Doerksen faces C.B. Dollaway at middleweight.

Grant (15-4) is coming off of a controversial majority decision loss to Johnny Hendricks at UFC 113 in Montreal. Many fans and pundits believed Grant did enough to warrant a victory, but two of the fight’s judges did not. With a UFC record of 2-2, Grant will look to move above .500 with a win. Grant was one of six Canadians who fell short in the organization’s third trip to Montreal. Only one Canuck won that night.

The lone Canadian victorious at UFC 113 was one of the country’s most veteran mixed martial artists, Joe Doerksen (46-12). Doerksen was a last minute replacement, but that didn’t stop him from submitting the tough Tom Lawlor in a thrilling preliminary bout. At UFC 119, he will fight the Ultimate Fighter Season 7 runner-up Dollaway in a middleweight showdown. Although nothing is official, Doerksen/Dollaway could possibly air on a Spike TV Prelims Live broadcast.

UFC 119 is shaping up to be an incredible card, and if you’re a fan of the Nogueira brothers, it may just end up being the card of the year. The main event features an anticipated rematch between heavyweights Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Frank Mir, while the co-main event pits light heavyweights Antonio Rogerio Nogueira and undefeated Ryan Bader against one another. Also on the card is a rematch between Ultimate Fighter 4 welterweight finalists Chris Lytle and the man who upset GSP, Matt Serra. Though the card is not yet complete, here is how it looks to date:

- Frank Mir vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira

- Ryan Bader vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira

- Evan Dunham vs. Sean Sherk

- Chris Lytle vs. Matt Serra

- Melvin Guillard vs. Jeremy Stephens

- C.B. Dollaway vs. Joe Doerksen

- Joey Beltran vs. Matt Mitrione

- Mark Hunt vs. Sean McCorkle

- T.J. Grant vs. Julio Paulino

- Aaron Riley vs. Pat Audinwood