Rousimar “Toquinho” Palhares (7-1-0) 185 lbs., fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil is a highly touted middleweight who trains with the Brazilian Top Team. Palhares is currently riding a five-fight win streak, which includes victories over the likes of Flavio Luiz Moura, Daniel Acacio, and Fabio Negao. The 27-year-old is a noted Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioner and of his seven victories, four have come via submission. His first opponent in the UFC will be Ivan Salaverry, a longtime MMA veteran.

Fighting out of Seattle, Wash., Salaverry (12-5-1) 6’1”/185 lbs., is one of the premier middleweights in the game today. The Toronto-native, given his ground knowledge, as well as a solid standup attack, has proven to be a rough night out for anyone at 185 pounds. He has defeated such fighters as Andrei Semenov, Tony Fryklund, and Joe Riggs. Beating Salaverry is no easy task, even in the best of circumstances, and this fight with “Toquinho” will be no exception.

Kazuhiro “Kaz” Nakamura (11-7-0) 5’10”/205 lbs., fighting out of Tokyo, Japan, is the owner of wins over Murilo Bustamante, Kevin Randleman, and Igor Vovchanchyn. This protégé of Judo legend and 1992 Olympic gold medalist, Hidehiko Yoshida, has also locked horns with Dan Henderson, Wanderlei Silva, Josh Barnett, and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, making him one of the most battle-tested veterans at the elite level of the game. Fellow former PRIDE® fighter Sokoudjou will also put up a mean battle that could go the distance.

Sokoudjou (4-2-0) 6’0”/205 lbs., moved to the United States from his native Cameroon in 2001, and by 2004, he had turned his attention to mixed martial arts. He made his MMA debut in 2006, and by 2007 he was brought in to fight in the PRIDE organization. It was there that Sokoudjou truly made his mark as he knocked out world-class light heavyweights Antonio Rogerio Nogueira and Ricardo Arona in consecutive bouts, with neither fight making it out of the second minute. A member of the renowned Team Quest in California, the 23-year old Sokoudjou comes to the Octagon for the second time looking to show the fans of the UFC why he was, and is still, a force to be reckoned with when he takes on “Kaz.”