Donald Cerrone (13-3, 1 NC, 0-0 UFC) makes his UFC debut against Paul Kelly (11-3, 5-3 UFC). This lightweight fight will headline the Spike TV portion of the telecast.
How do these guys stack up?
Cerrone: 27 years old, 6’0″, 72″ reach
Kelly: 26 years old, 5’9″, 70″ reach
What have they done lately?
Cerrone: W – Horodecki (SUB), W – Varner (UD), L – Henderson (SUB)
Kelly: W – O’Brien (TKO), L – Volkmann (UD), W – Veach (SUB)
How did these guys get here?
After starting his career with seven straight victories, Cerrone made his WEC debut in June of 2008. Victories over Danny Castillo and Rob McCullough led to a title shot against Jamie Varner at WEC 38. An incidental, illegal knee to Varner forced a halt to the bout and a split technical decision for him. Cerrone would go on to fight for the WEC title twice more, losing to Ben Henderson in both instances. Cerrone avenged the loss to Varner at WEC 51, and won his last fight over Chris Horodecki at WEC 53.
Paul Kelly is the product of the UFC’s international expansion. He started his career 6-0 in Great Britain before making his UFC debut against fellow Brit Paul Taylor at UFC 80 in Newcastle, England. Kelly went 3-3 in his next six UFC contests, and beat T.J. O’Brien in his last fight at UFC 123.
Why should you care?
We’ll find out how Donald Cerrone stacks up against lower-tier UFC lightweights. If Cerrone can’t beat Kelly, he won’t fare well in the deepest division in the UFC.