“Win or lose, Mark and I both have a lot to contribute to the sport,” Couture said to the Las Vegas Sun. “I don’t think it’s a make-or-break fight for us. We both have the competitive spirit in us.

Every time Mark and I fight, they’re going to judge us. ‘Oh, he’s slowing down. Maybe he should retire.’ I’ve been dealing with this for six years.”

Couture and Coleman will square off in the main event at UFC 109 on February 6 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The event is scheduled for February 6 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Visa issues prevented Al-Turk from participating in the fight.

Beltran (10-3) is making his debut in the UFC. He recently earned a TKO win over Houston Alexander at 5151 Combat League in January.

His opponent Gracie (3-0) will also be debuting inside the Octagon. All three of his victories came by submission in the very first round.

UFC 109 is headlined by UFC Hall of Famers Randy Couture and Mark Coleman. Also featured is a co-main event between Nate Marquardt and Chael Sonnen.

“I’m not just in this to play around,” Coleman told MMA Weekly. “I’m in this to be a winner. I’m in this to be a champion still. I’m still a competitor. If I put in the time, if I work my ass off, if I train hard enough, at 205 I feel like I can compete with anybody. That’s the goal.

I don’t want to look past Randy. I’m not looking past Randy, but with everybody asking that question you kind of have to sometimes.”

Coleman and Couture will battle on February 6 at UFC 109. Both light heavyweight fighters emerged victorious in their last outings.

Past seasons of TUF featured either 16 or 32 contestants, with single eliminations in each round of the competition.

The format will be revealed on the premiere episode, which airs on Spike TV on Wednesday, March 31, at 10 p.m. ET/PT.

Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz are serving as the season’s coaches. Both former UFC light heavyweight champions have previously coached on the show. Liddell coached in TUF 1 opposite Randy Couture, and Ortiz in TUF 3 against Ken Shamrock.

He said:

“I gave Brock a courtesy call, I heard he was real sick. It was like trying to find the Pope to get his number, but I finally got a hold of him before Christmas just to see how he was doing, and he was very upbeat, very positive. He said that he was training again and that he wasn’t cleared yet to get on the mat, but that he was back in the gym and that he was training and he felt way better, and he’ll be back this spring. He’s back on the road to recovery and things look good. He was waiting for January to get cleared by the doctors before he can go back into the gym and get on the mats. But he was going to the gym and training. So, that was encouraging to me, he sounded good.”

The event, which is set for March 21 at the Odeum Colorado in Broomfield, Colorado, marks the debut of the UFC on the Versus channel.

The 32-year old Vera holds a record of 11-4. He is coming off a disappointing loss to UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture at UFC 105 this past November. Prior to the defeat, he had been victorious in two consecutive bouts.

“I’m honored to be headlining the first ever UFC on VERSUS,” said Vera. “On March 21st, when I fight Jon Jones, we’re gonna find out how hard his ‘Bones’ are.”

Jones, a young mixed martial artist at only 22 year of age, has only tasted defeat once in his MMA career thus far. After winning nine fights in row, he suffered his first loss to Matt Hamill by disqualification in bout that took place at the TUF 10 Finale in December. Despite the loss, Jones dominated the entire fight and looked very impressive.

“I’m really starting to believe in myself and that I do belong here at the top,” said Jones. “I’m working really hard and I know you have to fight the best and beat the best in order to be the best, and that’s what I’ll be doing when I take on Brandon Vera on March 21st.”

The rest of the fights on the card will be soon announced.

UFC welterweight Mike Swick will be replacing fellow teammate Josh Koscheck in his scheduled fight against Paulo Thiago at UFC 109 on February 6 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The news was first reported by MMA Fighting on Monday.

Koscheck was forced to pull out of the bout due to an undisclosed injury. He was looking to avenge his knockout loss to Thiago at UFC 95 in March, but will now have to wait for a possible rematch in the future.

UFC 109 is headlined by UFC Hall of Famers Randy Couture and Mark Coleman. Also featured on the main card is Nate Marquardt vs. Chael Sonnen, Demian Maia vs. Dan Miller, and Matt Serra vs. Frank Trigg.

The UFC officially announced on Tuesday that heavyweights Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Cain Velasquez will headline UFC 108 on January 2 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

“Nogueira vs. Velasquez is a great matchup between the present and the future of the heavyweight division,” said UFC President Dana White. “Nogueira showed in the Couture fight that he still has plenty left to offer at the top level of the game, and Velasquez was devastating in his win over Ben Rothwell, so with both guys in top form, we’re definitely going to see a number one contender emerge from this fight to take on the winner of the Brock Lesnar vs Shane Carwin title fight.”

Nogueira, a former UFC interim heavyweight champion and PRIDE heavyweight champion, holds a record of 32-5-1 with 1 no contest. He recently battled UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture at UFC 102 in August, winning by unanimous decision.

“I’m very excited to face an up-and-coming fighter such as Cain Velasquez,” Nogueira said. “I’m looking to get right back in the title picture. It will be interesting coming off that great win against a legend such as Randy Couture to now face a fighter who’s at the beginning of a promising career and who’s looking for that same success.”

Velasquez, who is currently undefeated a 8-0, is coming off an impressive second-round TKO victory over Ben Rothwell at UFC 104 in October.

“I am excited to fight a legend like Nogueira. He’s one of the fighters I watched growing up and admired – he’s definitely one of the greats, and a win over him is what I need to set me up for my shot at the title,” said Velasquez. “I have a lot respect for Noguiera and look forward to facing him in the Octagon.”

The UFC also officially announced a co-headlining light heavyweight fight between Rashad Evans and Thiago Silva for the event.