- UFC 146
Paul Sass handed Jacob Volkmann at UFC 146
Verbal agreements are in place for a lightweight match between England's undefeated submission specialist Paul Sass and Jacob Volkmann at UFC 146 in Las Vegas.
Liverpudlian Sass was expected to meet Evan Dunham at UFC on Fox 2 back in January but had to withdraw through injury. Dunham subsequently beat Nik Lentz and is now heading for a bout with highly-rated Brazilian Edson Barboza.
That turn of events shows how close Sass could be to entering the upper echelons of the UFC's lightweight division, having amassed a 12-0 MMA record to date.
He must negotiate the tricky task of Volkmann though, a man who has won five straight fights since dropping to 155 pounds. Among Volkmann's victims was former British UFC competitor Paul Kelly, who is a Team Kaobon colleague of Sass.
The fight could potentially play into Sass' style, with Volkmann preferring to control matters from top position. Sass boasts a sensational submissions arsenal from the bottom, winning all but one of his fights by submission so far in his career.
UFC 146 will be headlined by Junior Dos Santos v Alistair Overeem. The card will also feature bouts between Dunham and Barboza, and Jason Miller v CB Dollaway.