Eliot Marshall vs Vinny Magalhaes added to UFC 97 on April 18

by Jesse Holland on Mar 18, 2009 11:00 AM EDT

With just one month until Anderson "The Spider" Silva storms Montreal, former Ultimate Fighter 8 contestants Eliot Marshall (6-1) and Vinny Magalhaes (2-3) are set to collide on the undercard of UFC 97: "Redemption" at The Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on April 18, according to Five Ounces of Pain.

This news comes a few days after an MMAWeekly.com report that stated Marshall would face Mike Ciesnolevicz, who was scratched from the bout due to an undisclosed injury.

Marshall cut his teeth in the ‘Ring of Fire’ promotion before making his debut on the eighth season of TUF. He would eventually fall to division winner Ryan Bader in the semifinals, but bounced back at the TUF 8 Finale with a submission victory over castmate Jules Bruchez.

A Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, "The Fire" frequently trains with Greg Jackson’s camp in New Mexico and is very dangerous on the ground.

Unfortunately for Marshall, his opponent is no slouch on the mat himself.

Magalhaes subbed his way into the finals of the SpikeTV reality show before eventual winner Ryan Bader gave him a case of the stupids in the first round of their face off courtesy of an awkward head shot.

It was "Pezao's" second straight loss. Prior to TUF, the grappling wizard verbally quit in his match against Raphael Davis at Valor Fighting "Fight Night" back in March of 2008.

UFC 97 main event features middleweight champion Anderson Silva, putting his 185-pound title on the line against number one division contender, Thales Leites. In the co-main event, Mauricio Rua — fresh off his less-than-thrilling victory over Mark "The Hammer" Coleman at UFC 93 — will challenge former UFC light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell.

To check out the latest UFC 97 fight card news and rumors click here.

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Comments

not a bad match up could go either way in my opinion … i thought they would build both these fighters up slowly i didnt think 2 top contenders of tuf would meet so soon but what ever

i am personally interested in seeing this match up this card is looking good

by ufcaddict on Mar 18, 2009 11:06 AM EDT reply actions

Originally Mike C was supposed to fight Eliot but he got injured and Vinny is filling in.

I like Eliot in this fight because Vinny has zero standup. Even though Vinny’s BJJ is on a totally different level then Eliot’s, Eliot’s black belt should be enough so that he doens’t make any supid mistakes. I think Eliot takes this fight on the feet because Vinicous does not like getting hit in the face. Although, if Eliot drops Vinny and thinks he’s out and goes for the kill, Vinny may play possum and bait him into a trap and submit him when he least expects it.

by ViolentMike on Mar 18, 2009 11:09 AM EDT up reply actions

either vinny sucks or he can be the nexy best thing cause he was walking through everyone on tuf and nows he’s ???? I want him to get back to destroyin kids

by mikeybear on Mar 18, 2009 11:21 AM EDT up reply actions

Ya – the jury’s still out on this one. WTF was Vinny thinking in that fight with Bader?? His BJJ is out of this world yet he chose to stand with him? Anytime these guys come out and start saying they’re going to “surprise us” always get KTFO. I don’t hear Demian Maia saying he’s not going to sub anyone simply because he’s been working on his standup. Why? Because he has sick subs and can use them to win. Vinny needs to do the same. Vinny by sub but only if he’s smartened up.

by Dugout on Mar 18, 2009 12:27 PM EDT up reply actions

Elliot is a stud in the making. Vinny has mad potential. Like VM says, he doesnt like getting hit in the face and that is a problem. However, Vinny has been training at extreme couture and I am sure that he will show much improvement with his hands, and Shawn Tomkins will fine tune Vinny’s kicking which is solid due to his raw athleticism.

No way of predicting this fight because both fighters are going to improve so much from one fight to the next. Just a matter of who has improved the most by fight night. No way of telling! But I will just sit back and enjoy this match up. Should be a good one!

by john on Mar 18, 2009 4:02 PM EDT up reply actions

Eliot will take this fight simply because vinny folds. And don’t let their grappling match fool you.

by NameNotRequired on Mar 18, 2009 7:05 PM EDT up reply actions

i bet vinny hasnt been training anywhere near brazil after nogueira called him out!

by brendan on Mar 19, 2009 12:52 AM EDT up reply actions

In response to my comment I just typed but is being mod’d

HOWEVER, a bitch slap has been known to send Vinny into la la land.

by ViolentMike on Mar 18, 2009 11:10 AM EDT up reply actions

I got Vinny by a sub. Eliot’s mental toughness is a question mark (from what I saw on TUF).

by OJR on Mar 18, 2009 11:35 AM EDT up reply actions

Yawn, i don’t like either fighter.
Hoping for a double KO.

by Lester the Pimp on Mar 18, 2009 11:13 AM EDT reply actions

marshall has a skill set but would be better suited for the mw division as he’s a small lhw. magalhaes is world class and can sub anyone. he just needs to develop his standup and chin like crazy and he can be a force.

by bobby o'shea on Mar 18, 2009 11:30 AM EDT up reply actions

Marshall is well bigger than Vinny. Marshall is a pretty big guy. If you met him face to face you would think “How could he make 205” Im telling you hes big.

by belfort_fan on Mar 18, 2009 12:20 PM EDT up reply actions