The main event at UFC on FX 6 sees Ultimate Fighter coaches collide as George Sotiropoulos (14-4 MMA; 7-2 UFC) faces Ross Pearson (13-6 MMA; 5-3 UFC). This Lightweight fight is the last of four main card bouts. The UFC on FX 6 main card airs this Friday night, December 14, starting at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT.
The set-up for this fight comes from The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes. There, both men were coaches, with Sotiropoulos representing Australia, and Pearson the UK. The two clashed during the season, and seem to have a legitimate dislike of each other. Setting that aside, it’s an interesting stylistic match-up, as Sotiropoulos is definitely a more submission based fighter, while Pearson favors the stand-up game. Both men had solid runs not long ago, but both are also coming off of loses. This is a golden opportunity for one to jump back into the mix.
How do these two stack up?
Sotiropoulos: 35 years old | 5’10” | 72″ reach
Pearson: 28 years old | 5’8″ | 69″ reach
What have these two done recently?
Sotiropoulos: L – Rafael dos Anjos (KO) | L – Dennis Siver (UD) | W – Joe Lauzon (Sub)
Pearson: L – Cub Swanson (TKO) | W – Junior Assuncao (UD) | L – Edson Barboza (SD)
How did these two get here?
George Sotiropoulos came to the UFC back in 2007 out of season 6 of The Ultimate Fighter. He came out of the gates strong, putting together a pretty incredible 7-0 UFC run, culminating in wins over Joe Stevenson, Kurt Pellegrino, and Joe Lauzon. But since then, he’s faltered, losing back to back fights and not competing since July 2011. He’s a fantastic submission artist, but at 35, you get the sense that run could have been his last.
Ross “The Real Deal” Pearson is another TUF alum, coming from season 9 where he similarly represented the UK. After winning that season, he had a good start to his UFC career, including a win over Dennis Siver. He hasn’t found consistency since, and has been on a win one lose one pattern since 2010 (which, if that pattern holds, means he’s due for a win here). Despite these struggles, he’s shown great improvement over the years, thanks partly to training with champion Dominick Cruz and the team at The Alliance. He’s been competing at Featherweight lately, but moves back up to Lightweight for this fight.
Why should you care?
This isn’t the greatest main event ever, but it’s a very good fight between two solid veterans. I’m interested to see how it plays out.
About the author
