Two veterans in need of a win will meet in Philadelphia in August, when Rich Franklin and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira meet up at UFC 133.The UFC confirmed that fight -- along with a welterweight bout pitting Brian Ebersole against Dennis Hallman -- on Friday afternoon.
Franklin (28-6, 1 no contest) is coming off a UFC 126 unanimous decision loss to Forrest Griffin. In that fight, Griffin surprised Franklin by consistently taking him down and working his ground game.
The popular former middleweight champion has alternated wins and losses over his last six fights, going 3-3. Since moving up to light-heavyweight, he's split two fights, previously defeating Chuck Liddell via knockout.
Nogueira needs a win more than Franklin, losing two fights in a row since starting his UFC tenure 2-0. His back-to-back losses have come against wrestling-heavy opponents Phil Davis and Ryan Bader.
With Franklin and Nogueira both emphasizing the striking aspect of their games, this should be a matchup spent mostly on the feet.
UFC 133 takes place on Aug. 6 from the Wells Fargo Center. A main event has yet to be announced but confirmed fights include Vitor Belfort vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama, Jorge Rivera vs. Alessio Sakara and Michael McDonald vs. Nick Pace, among others.
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