Amir Sadollah-Brad Blackburn to be added to UFC Fight Night 20 in Virginia

November 30, 4:41 PMNewark MMA ExaminerJoe Rizzo

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Brad Blackburn is the next opponent for Amir Sadollah.

(Debbie Rizzo/JoeTed.com)

As if the UFC's initial foray into Virginia for UFC Fight Night 20 was not stacked enough, it appears The Ultimate Fighter Season 7 champion Amir Sadollah will be taking on Brad Blackburn in a welterweight match.

A source close to the negotiations told me the bout has been agreed to and should be signed by early next week.

The Jan. 11 card, to be held at the Patriot Center on George Mason University's campus, is loaded with TUF alums, and headlined by the lightweight battle between Gray Maynard and Nate Diaz.  Efrain Escudero takes on Evan Dunham at 155 pounds, while the colorful Tom Lawlor and Aaron Simpson meet at middleweight.  

There is space for another fight to be televised live on the Spike TV portion of the card, and it would seem that the popular Sadollah, whose pounding of Phil Baroni at UFC 106 was on the pay-per-view portion of the card, would be slotted in.  Sadollah improved to 2-1 -- all in the UFC -- with the impressive win over Baroni.

Sadollah has been involved with Spike TV, this season hosting "The Aftermath" web video series.  Sadollah has sat down with members of TUF 10 this season to review each episode of the most popular campaign of the UFC's hit reality show. 

Blackburn (15-9-1 overall, 3-0 UFC) has a middling career record but has found himself in the later portion of his career, running off five straight wins, with one no-contest, since his last loss, to TUF 9 competitor Mark Miller in April 2007. 

Blackburn's UFC victims include previously unbeaten Edgar Garcia on the TUF 9 finale card and Ryo Chonan at UFC 92.  But his signature win is a 40-second knockout of IFL welterweight champion Jay Hieron. 

Hieron and Sadollah both train in Las Vegas at Xtreme Couture.

Blackburn, who also has a victory over UFC veteran Chris Wilson, injured his shoulder in the fight with Garcia, and needed surgery to repair his labrum and AC joint. 

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