MacDonald Steps Up for Second Fight against Lambert

Despite almost three rounds of fast-paced ground warfare against Demian Maia at UFC 87 on August 9th, Edmonton’s Jason “The Athlete” MacDonald has decided to step to the plate again less than a month after the bout to replace injured countryman Jason Day against Jason Lambert at UFC 88.

The middleweight battle will take place on September 6th at Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. Tickets for UFC 88 – which features the light heavyweight showdown between Chuck Liddell and Rashad Evans – are on sale now.

MacDonald (21-10), who was submitted by Maia in the third round of the best groundfighting battle seen in the UFC this year earlier this month, owns Octagon wins over Ed Herman, Chris Leben, Rory Singer, and Joe Doerksen, and he will be looking to get back in the win column against Lambert (23-8) a longtime 205-pound standout making his middleweight debut on September 6th.

Another revised bout for the UFC 88 card will see Octagon newcomer Mike Patt stepping in to replace injured James Lee against Tim Boetsch in a light heavyweight contest. Patt, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt under Jorge Gurgel, fights out of Dayton, Ohio and owns 11 first round victories on his impressive 15-2 record.

The New Season of The Ultimate Fighter Premieres September 17th

Two Of The UFC’s Top Heavyweights, Interim Champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Former Champ Frank Mir, To Serve As Coaches

New York , NY , August 18, 2008 – They come from all over the globe, spanning Brooklyn to Israel , including far-off locales such as Russia , Nova Scotia , England , and Hawaii . Their diverse backgrounds range from a former Division 1 college football player to a CIA recruiter and include the brother of "The Ultimate Fighter 2" winner.

For these 32 up-and-coming mixed martial arts fighters, there is one goal, to win a six-figure contract with the preeminent mixed martial arts organization in the world, The Ultimate Fighting Championship.®

Season eight of Spike TV's wildly successful original series, "The Ultimate Fighter," premieres Wednesday, September 17 at 10:00pm ET/PT, with 16 lightweights (155lbs) and 16 light heavyweights (205lbs) under the watchful eye of the coaches interim UFC heavyweight champion, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir.

Each of the 32 contestants must fight his way into the Ultimate Fighter House by winning a preliminary bout that will be featured during the first two episodes (Sept. 17 and 24). The remaining 10 episodes will feature the victorious 16 fighters and their quest for the coveted "Ultimate Fighter" crown.

During the six-week taping of "The Ultimate Fighter: Team Mir vs. Team Nogueira," these 16 men who survived the prelims endured a grueling regimen of jiu-jitsu, judo, muay thai, karate, boxing and wrestling. The intense competition between the fighters continues after they leave the gym – at The Ultimate Fighter House. These warriors must live together, knowing that any day they might be forced to fight each other in the famed UFC Octagon™.

The two finalists will square off in a live finale Saturday, December 13 on Spike TV, when the two weight class winners will be declared The Ultimate Fighter® and net the aforementioned contract and a cash prize. UFC President Dana White will once again serve as host of the series.

After each show, Spike.com users will get exclusive extended footage from each episode and an exclusive video leak of the upcoming episode.

Craig Piligian of Pilgrim Films and Television, Frank Fertitta III, Lorenzo Fertitta, Dana White of Zuffa, LLC, and Kevin Kay of Spike TV are the show's executive producers. Brian J. Diamond, senior vice president, Sports & Specials, Spike TV is co-executive producer and Christopher Martello is executive in charge of production for Spike TV.

Tyson Griffin vs Sean Sherk Official for UFC 90 in Chicago

Rising 155-pound star Tyson Griffin will put his four fight winning streak on the line at the Allstate Arena in Chicago, Illinois on October 25th when he squares off against his most accomplished foe to date, former UFC lightweight champion Sean Sherk, in a key matchup on the UFC 90 main card.

Tickets for UFC 90, which features the UFC middleweight title bout between champion Anderson Silva and challenger Patrick Cote, as well as a welterweight battle between Thiago Alves and Diego Sanchez, are on sale now.

Las Vegas’ Griffin has been nearly perfect in his UFC stint, going 5-1 since making his Octagon debut in 2006. Among his victims are Clay Guida, Thiago Tavares, Gleison Tibau, and most recently, Marcus Aurelio. In Sherk, Griffin will be taking on a nine year veteran of the sport who is looking to get back in the win column after a loss to BJ Penn in their UFC 84 title fight in May.

Also added to the UFC 90 card is a battle for Brazilian bragging rights when Fortaleza’s Hermes Franca takes on Rio Grande Norte’s Gleison Tibau in a lightweight bout, and a clash of former Ultimate Fighter alumni between season two’s Josh Burkman and season four’s Pete Sell, who will be making his welterweight debut in the UFC’s initial foray into the Windy City.

By Thomas Gerbasi

UFC 87 Picks

I'm loving the main event fights for this card. Lensar is just incredibly huge. I hope his skills are developing if he wants to stay in the fight game. Below are my UFC 87 picks for the night. This should be an interesting fight night.

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Picks are in Bold

Georges St-Pierre Vs. Jon Fitch

Brock Lesnar Vs. Heath Herring

Kenny Florian Vs. Roger Huerta

Manny Gamburyan Vs. Rob Emerson

Jason MacDonald Vs. Demian Maia

Luke Cummo Vs. Tamdan McCrory

Cheick Kongo Vs. Dan Evensen

Andre Gusmao Vs. Jon Jones

Chris Wilson Vs. Steve Bruno

Ben Saunders Vs. Ryan Thomas