AUSSIE KYLE NOKE CONFIRMED FOR UFC® ON FX CARD IN AUSTRALIA
NOKE TO FIGHT IN HOME STATE AT DECEMBER 15 EVENT
In an exciting development for Australian fight fans, the Ultimate Fighting Championship® today announced that Queensland’s-own Kyle Noke (20-6-1) will face American welterweight Seth “Polish Pistola” Baczynski (17-6-0) at UFC® on FX: SOTIROPOULOS vs. PEARSON. The event will be held at the Gold Coast Convention and Entertainment Centre on Saturday, Dec. 15, 2012 and will be broadcast LIVE from 1pm AEDT on FX (FOXTEL channel 123).
Two experienced and well-rounded fighters, both Noke and Baczynski are coming off impressive first-round wins over their opponents at UFC® 152 in Toronto on September 23.
Born in Dubbo, NSW, Noke lived on the Sunshine Coast, QLD, before moving to the United States where he now trains full time with Jackson MMA in New Mexico alongside the likes of Clay Guida, Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone and UFC light heavyweight champion, Jon Jones.
Commenting on his opportunity to fight on UFC on FX: SOTIROPOULOS vs. PEARSON card, Noke said: “Fighting on the Gold Coast is a dream come true. When I found out that the UFC was holding an event in Queensland, where I started my MMA career, I wanted to fight at this event more than anything. I asked the UFC to include me on this card and am grateful for the chance to fight in my home state. I cannot wait to get into the Octagon against Seth and do my family, friends and country proud.”
Noke made his welterweight debut at UFC 152 and proved himself as a force to be reckoned with in the lighter weight division following an explosive 45-second TKO over highly-regarded Charlie Brenneman (15-5-0). Noke’s previous UFC fights have all been at middleweight with three wins from five fights since his UFC debut in The Ultimate Fighter® season 11 in 2010.
“I feel great dropping to welterweight,” Noke said. “I started my career in this weight division before moving up to middleweight in TUF but I feel like this is where I should be and I’m in the best condition of my career.”
The event will be headlined by The Ultimate Fighter: Australia vs UK – The Smashes™ coaches, Australia’s George Sotiropoulos (14-4-0) and England’s Ross Pearson (15-6-0), who will meet in the lightweight division.
The card will also feature the highly anticipated finalists from The Smashes in the welterweight and lightweight divisions and adopted Aussie Hector Lombard (31-3-1, 1 NC) versus Rousimar 'Toquinho' Palhares (23-4-0).
Also confirmed for the UFC on FX: SOTIROPOULOS vs. PEARSON card is a bout between two explosive light heavyweights: Ednaldo ‘Lula’ Oliveira (13-1-1, 1 NC) vs Krzysztof ‘The Polish Experiment’ Soszynski (22-13-1).
Tickets to UFC® on FX: SOTIROPOULOS vs. PEARSON will go on sale on Friday, Oct. 19 at 10 a.m. AEDT. Tickets will be priced at $350, $285, $225 and $175. To purchase tickets or for more information visit the Gold Coast Box office or Ticketek.
UFC Fight Club™ members will have the opportunity to purchase tickets to this event Wednesday, Oct. 17 at 10 a.m. AEDT via the website www.ufcfightclub.com. A special Internet ticket pre-sale will be available to UFC newsletter subscribers Thursday, Oct. 18, starting at 10 a.m. AEDT. To access this presale, users must register for the UFC newsletter through UFC.com.
The Ultimate Fighter: Australia vs. UK – The Smashes is broadcast on FX (FOXTEL channel 123), on Wednesdays at 7.30pm AEST. For more info visit aus.TUF.tv.