ULTIMATE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP® CONFIRMS REMAINING BOUTS FOR UFC 88: BREAKTHROUGH

Courtesy of the Ultimate Fighting Championship:

For Immediate Release:
August 27, 2008

KURT PELLEGRINO vs. THIAGO TAVARES
MICHAEL PATT vs. TIM BOETSCH
MATT BROWN vs. DONG HYUN KIM
JASON MACDONALD vs. JASON LAMBERT
RYO CHONAN vs. ROAN CARNEIRO

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2008
LIVE FROM PHILIPS ARENA

Las Vegas, NV (USA) – The Ultimate Fighting Championship® (UFC®) organization today announced the remaining fights for the upcoming UFC 88: BREAKTHROUGH which features legendary former champion Chuck "The Iceman" Little and unbeaten rising star "Sugar" Rashad Evans. They will finally meet in the Ultimate Fighting Championship® organization's historic first trip to Atlanta for UFC 88: BREAKTHROUGH, live at Philips Arena on Saturday, September 6, 2008.

Just confirmed on the undercard are exciting match-ups between Kurt Pellegrino vs. Thiago Tavares; Michael Patt vs. Tim Boetsch; Ryo Chonan vs. Roan Carneiro; Jason MacDonald vs. Jason Lambert; and Matt Brown vs. Dong Hyun Kim.

Tickets for UFC 88: BREAKTHROUGH are on sale now and are priced at $604, $404, $254, $154 and $79. Tickets for UFC 88 are also available at Philip's Arena Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets, online at ticketmaster.com or by calling 404.249.6400.

UFC 88: BREAKTHROUGH 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).

Kurt Pellegrino (17-4-0) 5’8”/155 lbs., fighting out of Point Pleasant, NJ, is an energetic fighter who has participated in two of the most exciting lightweight bouts of 2008 against Alberto Crane and Nate Diaz. Pellegrino is someone who always gives fans their monies’ worth. Now having gone back home to New Jersey and reorganized his team and training, Pellegrino doesn’t want to just entertain, he wants to win the UFC lightweight championship. In the way of this is Florianopolis, Brazil’s Thiago Tavares (17-2-0). Having trained in martial arts for most of his 23 years, Tavares 5’7”/155lbs., holds an experience edge not enjoyed by most fighters at this level of the game. He’s made the most of it, winning 17 of his 19 pro fights. Now, Tavares will be met by a fighter who matches him in experience and talent with Pellegrino. The ensuing bout between the two may just end up being one of the best fights of the year.

Michael Patt (15-2-0) 6’0”/205 lbs., fighting out of Dayton, Ohio, is no stranger to the UFC, as he is a training partner of former middleweight champion Rich Franklin and a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt under lightweight standout Jorge Gurgel. Now he will get a chance to carve his own name in the Octagon™ history books as he pursues a win against Tim “The Barbarian” Boetsch. Fighting out of Sunbury, PA, and a student in the art of Bruce Lee’s Jeet Kune Do, Boetsch (7-2-0) 6’1”/205 lbs., made believers of any doubters in his UFC debut in February as he thrashed David Heath in a single round. While first impressions are nice, consistency makes champions, and no one knows that better than the 27-year old, who plans on notching his second UFC win against Patt.

Matt Brown (10-6-0) 6’0”/170 lbs., fighting out of Cincinnati, Ohio never wavered his focus throughout his stint on The Ultimate Fighter® earlier this year, as he sought victory in the 32 man competition. That determination remained intact at the season finale in June as he scored a second round stoppage over old rival Matt Arroyo to solidify his spot in the UFC. He will look to make it two in a row in the Octagon when he squares off against Dong Hyun Kim (10-0-1). One of Busan, South Korea’s fighting pioneers, Kim (6’1”/170 lbs.) became only the second fighter from his country to compete in the UFC when he made his debut in May. Just showing up isn’t enough for this talented judo black belt, and after a stirring victory over Jason Tan at UFC 84, the “Stun Gun” is ready to take the next step in his career against The Ultimate Fighter 7’s Brown.

Jason “The Athlete” MacDonald (21-10-0) 6’3”/185 lbs., fighting out of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, came into the UFC with little fanfare in 2006, but quickly made a name for himself by submitting highly touted Chris Leben and Ed Herman in successive bouts. He has since become a mainstay at 185 pounds, stopping Joe Doerksen at UFC 83 in April. After a tough loss to Demian Maia at UFC 87, a win over Jason “The Punisher” Lambert (23-8-0) is a must if he is to remain in title contention. Despite almost always being the smaller fighter, Lambert (5’10”/185 lbs., used a mix of heart, talent, and determination to establish himself in the UFC’s light heavyweight division with wins over the likes of Renato Sobral and Terry Martin. Tiring of giving up key advantages to his opponents, Carlsbad, California’s Lambert is dropping to his optimum weight of 185 pounds. On a level playing field, “The Punisher” is expected to be more dangerous than ever.

Ryo “Piranha” Chonan (14-8-0) 5’9”/170 lbs., fighting out of Yamagata City, Japan is known as “The Pirahna” for his tenacious style in the Octagon. Chonan, 31, is an accomplished veteran in MMA. Owner of wins over UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva, as well as Hayato Sakurai and Carlos Newton, he is looking to get back to his winning ways after a hard-fought battle with welterweight standout Karo Parisyan last November. He gets his chance against a man he defeated on cuts back in 2005, Brazilian contender Roan “Jucao” Carneiro (12-7-0). For three years, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil’s Carneiro has pursued a rematch with Chonan, waiting for his opportunity to avenge a 2005 loss that has haunted him. In that time, Carneiro’s fight game has grown by leaps and bounds, and he has put together seven wins, including two victories in the UFC over Rich Clementi and Tony De Souza. For this Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt, he won’t be able to truly move forward in his career until he gains revenge against “The Piranha.”

All bouts live and subject to change. For further information on the UFC visit ufc.com or uk.ufc.com or 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, SaskTel Max™ and via the Internet worldwide on Yahoo! Sports, and commercially through Joe Hand Promotions in the U.S. and Canadastar in Canada. 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 ufc.com or uk.ufc.com or ufcespanol.com.

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