‘The Combat Wombat’ Ben Sosoli will return to the octagon at UFC Auckland against Marcos Rogerio de Lima, one of three bouts announced for the card late Wednesday.
With the UFC Auckland main event in place — that would be Dan Hooker vs. Paul Felder, a battle of ranked lightweights — three more fights have been announced for the card.
On Wednesday, UFC officials announced Ben Sosoli vs. Marcos Rogerio de Lima, Jake Matthews vs. Emil Weber Meek, and Tyson Pedro vs. Vinicius Moreira. Each bout features a representative of nearby Australia, with Sosoli, Matthews, and Pedro all hailing from the nation.
We're not done yet! Enter the Combat Wombat! @BenSosoli faces Rogerio de Lima at #UFCAuckland 🇳🇿 pic.twitter.com/1mQKs26bx6
— UFC Aus/New Zealand (@UFC_AUSNZ) November 27, 2019
Ben Sosli (7-2, 2 NC), with the absolutely brilliant nickname ‘The Combat Wombat,’ is a veteran of both The Ultimate Fighter 28 and Dana White’s Contender Series. He was last seen tangoing with Greg Hardy and his inhaler, in a fight that ended in a no contest at UFC Boston. He will go up against Brazil’s Marcos Rogerio de Lima (9-4). Rogerio de Lima, a veteran of TUF Brazil 3, spent some time at light heavyweight, but is 1-1 since returning to heavyweight in 2018. He fell to Stefan Struve in his last outing.
Jake Matthews (15-4) is another TUF veteran, in this case on the Nations: Canada vs. Australia edition. At 4-1 in his last five bouts, he’s coming off a unanimous decision win over Rostem Akman at UFC 243. Meek (9–4, 1NC), meanwhile, will be looking to snap a two-fight skid.
Finally, Tyson Pedro (7-3) will look to get back in the win column after suffering a TKO loss against Shogun Rua last December. With over a year away, he’ll return against Brazil’s Vinicius Moreira (9-4), who has lost three straight.
UFC Auckland will take place February 23 (or February 22 in North America) at the Spark Arena in Auckland, New Zealand.
