TUF Stars to Headline UFC Fight Night in Colorado

April will see a UFC Fight Night packed with stars who made their mark on The Ultimate Fighter TV show.

Fellow New Englanders and rising stars in the UFC lightweight division, The Ultimate Fighter alumni Kenny "KenFlo" Florian and Joe Lauzon will meet each other where the Ultimate Fighting Championship all began, and headline the first UFC fight in the state of Colorado in 14 years live on Wednesday, April 2.

“We are excited to have a fight where the UFC first started, and also that UFC fans will be able to watch it on Spike TV,” said UFC President Dana White. “Lauzon and Florian will be a great comeback fight - these are two young guys who show improvement every time they get in the Octagon. Lauzon fought Jens Pulver as a huge underdog and he knocked him out, and then had a great run on The Ultimate Fighter 5. Kenny Florian got his UFC start in the original The Ultimate Fighter at 185 pounds, and since then dropped to 155 and has shown he is a guy to watch out for in this division. Both of these guys want to be the best young lightweight in the sport, and have the chance to prove it in a fight for the title.”

"We are thrilled that this great, nationally televised event will be at the Broomfield Event Center," said Gene Felling, Executive Vice President of Broomfield Sports and Entertainment and General Manager of Broomfield Event Center. "We expect it to be a popular event in the Denver-Boulder area."

UFC Fight Night will also feature a light heavyweight bout between light heavyweight contenders and fellow alumni of The Ultimate Fighter, Stephan Bonnar and Matt Hamill. The live fight card will take place at the Broomfield Event Center just outside the mile-high city of Denver in Broomfield, Colorado.

Boston native Kenny Florian made his UFC debut on Season 1 of The Ultimate Fighter making it to the finals before losing to Diego Sanchez. The 31-year old Florian used the sting of defeat as ample motivation to take his mixed martial arts training to another level, and he has dropped just one fight since, an epic five-round battle against Sean Sherk for the vacant UFC lightweight title in October of 2006. Florian has rebounded by posting impressive victories since then, and is hoping to continue his string of dominance in the division and earn another shot at the lightweight championship.

Standing in Florian’s way is fellow New Englander Joe Lauzon, a 23 year old who burst onto the scene with a thrilling TKO upset of Jens Pulver in his UFC debut. Lauzon gained national recognition as a member of Team Penn on Season 5 of The Ultimate Fighter last year, and the East Bridgewater native has kept training with Penn since the show’s end, notching impressive submission wins against Brandon Melendez and the previously undefeated Jason Reinhardt. In Florian, Lauzon will face his toughest task to date, and a win would further cement his place in the upper echelon of the extremely competitive lightweight division.

In the night’s feature fight, The Ultimate Fighter alumni and rising light heavyweights Stephan Bonnar and Matt Hamill (Season 3) will square off in a classic match-up of striker vs grappler.