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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief With a welterweight grudge match and a possible heavyweight mega-fight looking to come at UFC 98 in May, how about adding a lightweight confrontation to sweeten the pot? MMAMania.com reports that Sean Sherk and Frankie Edgar have agreed to face each other at the May 23rd event in Las Vegas.
Edgar was supposed to return at Fight Night 16 to face Matt Wiman but came up with a knee injury just before the event. He's been out of action since a unanimous decision victory over Hermes Franca at Fight Night 14 back in July. He comes into this fight with Sherk at 9-1, with his only loss being a decision defeat to Gray Maynard at Fight Night 13 last year.
Sean Sherk will be the biggest test of Edgar's career by far. The former Lightweight Champion is coming off of a victory over Tyson Griffin in the "Fight of the Night" for October's UFC 90 show, and he's looking to stay busy in the increasingly stacked lightweight division in hopes of another shot at that title down the line.
UFC 98 is set to take place on May 23rd, live on pay-per-view from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Penick's Analysis: While I was extremely intrigued by the prospects of a Sherk-Huerta fight, this is a good match-up in and of itself. Edgar's ready for a higher profile fight, and really he can't much more high profile than Sherk at this point. With Diego Sanchez and Joe Stevenson facing off at UFC 95, B.J. Penn in his war with GSP next weekend and Kenny Florian awaiting his title shot, Sherk is the absolute top contender that Edgar could face. He may not have enough to best the "Muscle Shark," but he's a hell of a young fighter who will be able to take the experience, win or lose, and utilize it in fights down the line. This is a great fight on paper and UFC 98 is looking very good right now.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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