"UFC Prelims" returns at UFC 121 with Jensen vs. McGee, Cote vs. Lawlor
In July, sources close to Spike TV told MMAjunkie.com (
www.mmajunkie.com) that the highly anticipated UFC 121 card might merit a "UFC Prelims" special.
Today, the cable channel made it official.
Spike TV officials announced today that the one-hour special returns for UFC 121 and features Ryan Jensen vs. Court McGee and Patrick Cote vs. Tom Lawlor.
UFC 121 takes place Oct. 23 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., and is headlined by a heavyweight tilt between current champion Brock Lesnar and challenger Cain Velasquez.
McGee (10-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) brought "TUF 11" a storybook ending when he came back from an early-round loss to Nick Ring and – as an injury replacement – defeated James Hammortree and Brad Tavares to earn a spot on the show's finale. In a dominant performance, he then submitted fellow finalist Kris McCray to earn the title of "The Ultimate Fighter."
The win was particularly emotional for the Ogden, Utah native, who battled drugs and alcohol before he found salvation in fighting. Professionally, it was McGee's fourth consecutive win. The sole loss on his record came at the hands of former UFC contender Jeremy Horn in December 2007.
Jensen (15-6 MMA, 2-4 UFC), meanwhile, caught an upswing in the seesaw of his recent UFC career when he scored a guillotine-choke victory over Jesse Forbes at UFC 114 to win "Submission of the Night" honors. Prior to that, a submission victory over Steve Steinbess was sandwiched in between submission losses to Wilson Gouveia and Mark Munoz.
In his first UFC stint, Jensen made two appearances in 2007 and lost to submission experts Thales Leites and Demian Maia at UFC 74 and UFC 77, respectively.
Although his wild costumes and cage entrances have struck the fancy of UFC fans around the world, Lawlor (6-3 MMA, 2-2 UFC) could be fighting for his octagon future in Anaheim. "The Filthy Maulor" has dropped two consecutive UFC bouts, a narrow split decision against Aaron Simpson and, most recently, a submission loss to replacement killer Joe Doerksen at UFC 113 in May.
Lawlor emerged from "The Ultimate Fighter 8" with a decision nod over fellow cast mate Kyle Kingsbury at the show's finale and followed up with a choke-out of C.B. Dollaway at UFC 100 before hitting the skids.
Fans might see a more subdued Lawlor come October, but then again, probably not.
You likely won't see any smiles coming from Cote (13-6 MMA, 4-6 UFC), who returned to the octagon at UFC 113 in May after his title dreams were spoiled at UFC 90 by a third-round knee injury in a fight against current middleweight kingpin Anderson Silva. The French Canadian faced Alan Belcher and was holding his own until the standout striker planted him on the mat with a near-spike and cinched a quick rear-naked choke.
After a turn on "The Ultimate Fighter 4" and a loss to Travis Lutter in the show's finale, Cote went on a tear and put away five consecutive opponents to earn his title bid. It was his best run to date following his first UFC stint in which he went 0-4 in the promotion.
