The answer of who would face Chris Lytle in the place of the injured Carlos Condit has finally been answered. On Tuesday, the UFC announced that Brian Ebersole will replace Condit at UFC 127 set for February 26th.

Condit recently injured his knee which forced him to withdraw from the event.

Sengoku has lost another big name talent to the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Last week middleweight champion Jorge Santiago walked away from the middleweight title for an apparent contract with the UFC. On Tuesday it was announced that standout wrestler Dave Herman has done the same.

The 20-2 fighter has already signed a multi-fight contract as reported by numerous MMA news outlets. The Japanese mixed martial arts scene has been in dire straights during the last few years of operation. This forced Herman’s management company to seek employment for their fighter in other locations.

The Ultimate Fighter is a popular reality based television show in which gives professional fighters the opportunitiy to compete for a contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. The show is entering its 13th season and filming has begun in Las Vegas, Nevada. However, fight fans may get to see this show expand to other countries very soon.

UFC President Dana White has announced that the Ultimate Fighter series will soon be expanding to other countries around the world.

As odd as it may seem, the act of fighting can bring individuals together. It’s normal to find that some of the tightest bonds form amongst those that train together. The act of throwing fists or exchanging submission holds can bring people to a friendship even out of the worst rivalries.

Take former UFC champions Matt Hughes and BJ Penn. These two fighters were embroiled in a feud that lasted more than seven years. With three fights between them; Penn has had his hand raised twice and Hughes just once. The last fight lasted mere moments and left Hughes looking to his corner asking “What happened?” Now that the battles inside the cage are over between these two, the next fight has brought them together.

The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale has its first fight announced for the card. Josh Grispi and George Roop will meet on June 4th in the featherweight division.

Grispi was once the number one ranked contender to Jose Aldo’s featherweight title.   However, a he was defeated by Dustin Poirier by unanimous decision at the January 1st UFC 125 event. Before that fight, Grispi was on a 10-fight win streak that included names such as Jens Pulver, Mark Hominick, and Micah Miller.

This is a new column to the MMA Zone.  I will rate each of the UFC’s weight classes.  The first in this series will be the middleweight division, where Anderson Silva has defeated all challengers since coming into the organization in 2006.

1. Anderson Silva – 14 consecutive wins

UFC 129

The Ultimate Fighting Championship has set Toronto ablaze.  The promotion’s international growth can be witnessed as the organization sold out the UFC 129 event in under an hour. Tickets were made available for UFC 129 this past Saturday and were completely gone before the end of the day.

UFC 129

As reported by Heavy.com, the UFC signed former Sengoku Middleweight Champion, Jorge Santiago.  Santiago, the owner of a 23 – 8 record, 1 – 2 UFC, will step into the Octagon to face fan favorite Brian Stann at UFC 130 in May.  Santiago is 11 – 1 over his last 12 fights, which for the most part have taken place in Sengoku and Strikeforce.

Santiago was the most current Sengoku Middleweight Champion, but asked for his release from the Japanese promotion, allowing the UFC to pick him up for the second time.  In a move that Dana White and Joe Silva often do with returning talent, they picked a tough fight to see where he stands in the organization.

Hamill will have the biggest fight of his career.

Matt “The Hammer” Hamill has officially stepped into Thiago Silva’s spot at UFC 130 against Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.  Silva was pulled from the card after issues with his UFC 125 drug test.  In recent days, speculation had been rampant claiming that Rashad Evans would face Jackson, but on Friday, the UFC made it official with Hamill.

Thiago Silva has been forced out of his May 28th matchup with Quinton “Rampage” Jackson at UFC 130. This is due to a drug test from his victory over Brandon Vera that has not completed its processing at this point.

Fifteen fighters were tested before UFC 125 in January and his test is the only one that has not been cleared at this point. For a test to be cleared, it must past all screenings against illegal substances. A timetable for a solid answer has not been set by the Nevada State Athletic Commission so MMA insiders believe Silva was pulled off the card just in case if a suspension is ruled.