Hector Lombard Battles Returning Josh Burkman At UFC 182
No. 6-ranked UFC welterweight Hector “Showeather” Lombard has been having a tough finding an opponent lately. A bout with the previously “retired” Nick Diaz was on the table, but the Stockton bad boy wouldn’t bite on a fight that wasn’t a surefire top draw.
He was set to face Dong Hyun Kim in the co-main event of late August’s UFC Fight Night 48 from Macau, but an injury forced No. 3 Tyron Woodley to step in.
“The Chosen One” took full advantage of the situation, knocking out the No. 10 “Stun Gun” to move onto to another big fight.
That fight was accepted by Lombard, but Woodley said that the bout “wasn’t good for his brand” and cited a friendship based on them being training partner’s at Florida’s American Top Team. Lombard set the story straight by stating that Woodley was rarely at the gym and that he was willing to fight Woodley regardless of if they are teammates or not.
The bout never came to fruition, however, and tonight (Fri., October 3, 2014) news broke that Lombard will face a surprising opponent in his next bout.
The former Bellator middleweight champion will take on former World Series of Fighting (WSOF) welterweight title contender Josh Burkman at the upcoming UFC 182 pay-per-view (PPV) on January 3, 2015 from Las Vegas, Nevada.
Burkman was last seen destroying Tyler Stinson with a first round knockout at WSOF 9 in late March. The win gave him victories in six out of his past seven bouts, with his only loss a fourth round submission to former champion Steve Carl in the main event of WSOF 6 in October 2013.
Burkman is a 10-fight UFC veteran who debuted with the promotion way back at The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 10 Finale in 2005. He stormed out to a 4-1 record, but dropped four out of his next five to end with a 5-5 record in the octagon. HE was recently involved in a highly publicized contract dispute with WSOF, which most likely prompted his re-signing with the UFC.
Meanwhile Lombard was last seen defeating Jake Shields with a one-sided decision at UFC 171 in March. He looked like he was on his way to finishing the veteran Shields, but slowed down to turn in an overall uninspired performance.
It’s a bit of a strange booking for Lombard, but it could be an interesting fight.
Featuring the long awaited Jon Jones vs. Daniel Cormier light heavyweight title fight, the event is also rumored to feature the blockbuster women’s bantamweight title match between Ronda Rousey and Cat Zingano.
Now the highly ranked Lombard is on the card to. But did he deserve a bigger name opponent?
