ULTIMATE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP® ANNOUNCES ADDITIONAL BOUTS FOR UFC 86: JACKSON VS. GRIFFIN

Courtesy of the Ultimate Fighting Championship:

For Immediate Release:
June 18, 2008

RICARDO ALMEIDA vs. PATRICK COTE
GLEISON TIBAU vs. JOE STEVENSON
CHRIS LYTLE vs. JOSH KOSCHECK
MARCUS AURELIO vs. TYSON GRIFFIN

SATURDAY, JULY 5, 2008
LIVE FROM MANDALAY BAY EVENTS CENTER

Las Vegas, NV (USA) – The Ultimate Fighting Championship® (UFC®) organization today announced four more fights on the star studded card for the upcoming UFC 86: JACKSON vs. GRIFFIN which features opposing coaches for The Ultimate Fighter® Season 7, UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and the winner of the first-ever season of The Ultimate Fighter, Forrest Griffin as they battle for light heavyweight supremacy. The Ultimate Fighting Championship® organization presents UFC 86: JACKSON vs. GRIFFIN live from the Mandalay Bay Events Center on Saturday, July 5, 2008.

Added to the fight card are exciting match-ups between Ricardo Almeida vs. Patrick Cote; Gleison Tibau vs. Joe Stevenson; Chris Lytle vs. Josh Koscheck; and Marcus Aurelio vs. Tyson Griffin.

Tickets for UFC 86: JACKSON vs. GRIFFIN are on sale now and are priced at $800, $500, $300, $200, $100 and $50. Tickets are being sold at any Mandalay Bay box office and all Las Vegas Ticketmaster locations (select Smith’s Food and Drug Centers, Macy’s West at the Fashion Show Mall and Ritmo Latino). To charge by phone with a major credit card, call the Mandalay Bay box office at (702) 632-7580 or Ticketmaster at (702) 474-4000. Tickets also are available for purchase at www.ufc.com, www.mandalaybay.com or www.ticketmaster.com.

UFC 86: JACKSON vs. GRIFFIN is available live on pay-per-view at 10 p.m. EST/7 p.m. PST on iN DEMAND, DIRECTV, DISH Network, TVN, Bell ExpressVu, Shaw Communications and Viewer’s Choice Canada for a suggested retail price of $44.95 for standard definition or high-definition broadcasts (where available).

Ricardo “Big Dog” Almeida (9-2-0) 6’0”/185 lbs., fighting out of Hamilton, NJ took a four year hiatus from mixed martial arts (MMA), and when he returned to the sport in February it was like he had never left, as the middleweight contender needed only 68 seconds to submit Rob Yundt at UFC 81 in Las Vegas. Now back firmly entrenched with the top 185-pounders in the world, the Renzo Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt is ready for the next step in his career against Patrick “The Predator” Cote. Fighting out of Quebec City, Canada, the 5’11”/185 lb. Cote, had a rocky start to his UFC career that saw him lose four consecutive fights to world-class foes such as Tito Ortiz and Chris Leben. “The Predator” has made a complete turnaround, not only winning three in a row in the Octagon™, but doing so in emphatic fashion as he decisioned Scott Smith, and then knocked out Kendall Grove and Drew McFedries. On the verge of a title shot, Cote must first get by his toughest foe to date in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu wizard Almeida.

Joe “Daddy” Stevenson (33-8-0) 5’7”/155 lbs., fighting out of Victorville, Calif., is one of those fighters that you sometimes learn more about in defeat than you do in victory. That was the case in January when The Ultimate Fighter® Season 2 winner Stevenson fell short in his UFC lightweight title bout against BJ Penn at UFC 80. Despite a bad cut, “Daddy” showed not only his prodigious talent, but the heart of a champion. In his return to the Octagon, he knows he has what it takes to not only get another title shot, but to win the coveted belt. He begins his road back to the crown against ground ace Gleison Tibau (27-4-0). Fighting out of Coconut Creek, Fla., and a member of the respected American Top Team, the 5’10”/155lb., Tibau showed he belonged in the Octagon in November of 2006 as he put forth a courageous effort against Nick Diaz at UFC 65. Displaying stellar jiu-jitsu techniques that had Diaz in trouble, Tibau was eventually overpowered by the bigger fighter and stopped in the second round. With the knowledge gained from the loss and a drop to the 155 pound weight class, the 24-year old native of Rio Grande Norte, Brazil got back in the Octagon and showed what he can truly do when he’s on a level playing field as he decisioned hard-nosed Jason Dent at UFC 68. He then moved on to submit Jeff Cox with a beautiful arm triangle choke at UFC Fight Night, and then decisioned Terry Etim at UFC 75. Tibau looks to rebound from a hard-fought loss to Tyson Griffin when he takes on Stevenson.

Chris “Lights Out” Lytle (35-14-4) 5’11”/170 lbs., fighting out of Indianapolis, Ind., is no pushover. If a young fighter has aspirations of getting to the next level in the UFC welterweight division, he has to get by seasoned veteran Lytle. More often than not, it’s been “Lights Out” for fighters like Kyle Bradley, Jason Gilliam, Ronald Jhun, and Tiki Ghosn. For him, fighting is just a way of life. At UFC 86, the Indiana standout looks to derail the Josh “Kos” Koscheck express and make his own way up the 170-pound ladder. “Kos” (13-2-0) 5’10”/170 lbs., is a UFC mainstay with eight Octagon wins to his name. Koscheck used to be seen strictly as a ground and pounder with world-class wrestling skills. Then after his impressive wins over Diego Sanchez and Dustin Hazelett, “Kos” has shown an ever-expanding array of striking skills. At his core though, he still credits wrestling for giving him a key mental edge over his opponents come fight time. If Koscheck is looking for another tough test, he will have ample opportunity to get one against perennial contender Lytle.

Tyson Griffin (11-1-0) 5’6”/155 lbs., fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev., is a relentless force in the Octagon who has already taken down the likes of Clay Guida, Thiago Tavares, and Gleison Tibau. Griffin is on the fast track to a title shot in one of the game’s toughest divisions, and gets his chance to really prove himself against Marcus “Maximus” Aurelio. In fact, the only thing that could top a victory over “Maximus” is if Griffin can score his first knockout or submission since September of 2006. Aurelio (14-5-0) 5’10”/155 lbs., had a rocky start to his UFC career. The Brazilian standout fighting out of Coconut Creek, Fla. got back to the form that he showed in scoring big Japanese wins over Takanori Gomi and Jutaro Nakao, when he dismantled Luke Caudillo and Ryan Roberts. Now the task for Aurelio is a formidable one, as he will match fists and wits with rising lightweight star Griffin.

The remaining bouts for UFC 86 will be announced in the near future. All bouts are live and subject to change. For further information on the UFC visit www.ufc.com or uk.ufc.com or www.ufcespanol.com.

About The Ultimate Fighting Championship

The Ultimate Fighting Championship® is the world’s leading professional mixed martial arts organization and offers the premier series of MMA sports events. Owned and operated by Zuffa, LLC, and headquartered in Las Vegas, Nev., UFC® produces over twelve live pay-per-view events annually that are distributed residentially through North American cable and satellite providers including iNDEMAND Networks, DIRECTV, DISH Network, TVN Entertainment, Shaw Pay-Per-View, Bell ExpressVU, Viewers Choice and via the Internet worldwide on Yahoo! Sports, and commercially through Joe Hand Promotions. In addition to its North American distribution, UFC programming is distributed in over 100 countries and territories throughout the world. For more information, or current UFC fight news, visit www.ufc.com or uk.ufc.com or www.ufcespanol.com.

Ultimate Fighting Championship®, Ultimate Fighting®, UFC®, The Ultimate Fighter®, Submission®, As Real As It Gets®, Zuffa™, The Octagon™ and the eight-sided competition mat and cage design are registered trademarks, trademarks, trade dress or service marks owned exclusively by Zuffa, LLC in the United States and other jurisdictions. All other marks referenced herein may be the property of Zuffa, LLC or other respective owners.