ANTHONY JOHNSON VS MATT BROWN AT TUF 9 FINALE

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ANTHONY JOHNSON VS MATT BROWN AT TUF 9 FINALE
Wednesday, March 25, 2009 - by Damon Martin - MMAWeekly.com
Just weeks after the proposed match-up between Anthony Johnson and John Howard fell through, Johnson now has a new opponent as "Ultimate Fighter" season 7 competitor, Matt Brown, has been tapped as a replacement to fight on the "Ultimate Fighter" season 9 finale show.

The fight was confirmed to MMAWeekly.com by sources close to the fight on Tuesday.

Matt Brown steps into the fight with Johnson coming off of a first round knockout win over Pete Sell at UFC 96 in early March. Brown caught Sell early in the round, but referee Yves Lavigne allowed the action to continue, which led to the Ohio native punishing his opponent for another series of strikes before the fight was stopped.

Now holding a 3-1 record in the Octagon with his lone loss being a controversial decision to Dong Hyun Kim in Sept 2008, Brown hopes to build on his current win streak in June when he faces a very game opponent in Anthony Johnson.

Johnson, who trains with Cung Le's team in California, is a fast rising star in the UFC's welterweight division. Known for his outstanding wrestling and powerful strikes, Johnson last fought Luigi Fioravanti in February, winning by TKO in the first round over the American Top Team fighter.

The bout between Johnson and Brown will most likely make the televised broadcast which will feature the finals of the lightweight and welterweight divisions for the reality show, along with the main event pitting Diego Sanchez against Clay Guida.