Somewhat lost amidst the announcement of the main event for the UFC’s Sweden debut, featuring Alexander Gustafsson vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, was the additional confirmation of an intriguing bantamweight scrap for the same card, with Brad Pickett taking on Damacio Page:
Additional bouts for this card include bantamweight action pitting British bomber Brad Pickett vs. free-swinging American Damacio Page
Pickett came into a very emotional bout in his native England at UFC 138 as one of the top-ranked bantamweights in the world, but after throwing strategy out the window and engaging in a wild firefight with Renan Barao, he ended up getting clipped on the feet and then choked out on the ground. Now in bad need of a win to regain his footing on the 135 lb. ladder, Pickett will once again compete in Europe, against another powerful puncher.
Page rarely finds himself in a boring fight, but like Pickett did against Barao, the Greg Jackson-trained fighter often employs a go-for-broke style rather than fighting with a smarter gameplan. It will be over a year since Page’s last fight when April rolls around, as an injury forced him out of a scheduled bout with Norifumi Yamamoto back in September. “The Angel of Death” is also looking to put a stop to a two-fight losing streak, with both losses coming via guillotine choke to Demetrious Johnson and Brian Bowles respectively.
Brad “One Punch” Pickett (20-6)
L Renan Barao (submission) – UFC 138
W Ivan Menjivar (unam. decision) – WEC 53
L Scott Jorgensen (unam. decision) – WEC 50
Damacio “The Angel of Death” Page (12-6)
L Brian Bowles (submission) – UFC on Versus 3
L Demetrious Johnson (submission) – WEC 52
W Will Campuzano (submission) – WEC 43