Perth based welterweight Steve Kennedy has signed with the UFC and is set to make his promotional debut on June 20 in Berlin, Germany.
Kennedy (22-6 MMA, 0-0 UFC) will meet German native Peter Sobotta (14-4-1 MMA, 1-3 UFC) at the event after Sobotta’s original opponent, Sergio Moraes, was forced to withdraw due to injury.
Although at this time the news has not been announced by the UFC, sources close to the situation have confirmed the match-up to Fight News Australia with German media site Spox.com also confirming the news.
UFC Fight Night 69: Jedrzejczyk vs Penne will take place at the O2 World Arena in Berlin, Germany, and will be headlined by a women’s strawweight title fight between reigning champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk (9-0) and title challenger Jessica Penne (12-3).
A UFC call-up has been a long time coming for Kennedy, who has continuously proven himself to be one of the top fighters on the local Australian circuit for a number of years now. The 32 year-old holds titles in multiple local promotions including the AFC, Roshambo, Superfight Australia and KOZ Entertainment. ‘The Steamrolla’ will take an impressive seven-fight win streak to Germany, which includes a stoppage win over former UFC-signed Aussie, and ‘TUF Smashes’ welterweight, Manuel Rodriguez. Most recently, Kennedy submitted Callan Potter at Hex FS 2 in March.
Peter Sobotta went 0-3 in his first UFC campaign with losses to Paul Taylor, James Wilks and Amir Sadollah between 2008 and 2010. The 28 year-old, however, went on to win five in a row, all by first round rear-naked chokes, before making a successful UFC return with a unanimous decision win over Pawel Pawlak at UFC Fight Night: Munoz vs Mousasi in May.
