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Eric Spicely returns to face Deron Winn at UFC Greenville
It has been a rocky road to get to this point, but looks like the third time will be the charm for Deron Winn’s UFC debut.
Sources have confirmed to MyMMANews.com that a deal is being finalized that will see Eric Spicely return to the UFC on short notice to meet the unbeaten Winn in a middleweight bout this Saturday at UFC on ESPN+ 12. The event will take place at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. The sources wish to remain anonymous because the fight hasn’t been officially announced by the organization.
Winn got on the UFC’s radar after taking on former organizational veteran Tom Lawlor at Golden Boy’s first trip into the world of mixed martial arts in November. Winn defeated Lawlor by unanimous decision to push his unbeaten record to 5-0. The AKA trained Winn was originally scheduled to face Markus Perez on Saturday, but Perez was forced to withdraw from the bout with an injury. Bruno Silva would be named as a replacement and, according to a report from ESPN on Sunday, Silva also suffered an injury leaving the door open for a short notice replacement. While a few names seemed to be in the conversation, one seemed to be climbing the ladder throughout the day and ended up being the horse to cross the proverbial finish line, per sources.
Spicely was released by the UFC following a second-round TKO loss to Darren Stewart at UFC Fight Night 130 in May 2018. “Zebrinha” has made it his mission to get another opportunity to compete inside the Octagon and has shined in the process. While competing with New England MMA promotion CES MMA, the submission specialist picked up back-to-back wins, via strikes, over Leo Pla in January, and fellow UFC veteran Caio Magalhaes at March’s CES 55 event.
UFC on ESPN+ 12 will be headlined by a featherweight contest between Renato Moicano and “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung. A bantamweight rematch between Rob Font and John Lineker will serve as the co-main event.
