Matt Horwich to Debut at UFC 90 Against Ricardo Almeida

Matt "Suave" Horwich, one of MMA’s most bizarre personalities and former IFL middleweight champion, will be bringing his unorthodox style to the world famous octagon at UFC 90 in Chicago.

The 29 year old Gresham, OR native will face Ricardo "Big Dog" Almeida, one of the UFC’s most proficient jiu-jitsu practitioners. Horwich is one of several former IFL fighters in recent weeks to be on the cusp of new employment. The IFL was recently forced to shut down permanently due to financial troubles after 2 years of putting on shows.

Horwich was one of the organization’s standouts who shocked the MMA world when he knocked out Benji Radach at the IFL "World Grand Prix Finals" in December.

Known for his exceptional ground game, the Team Quest fighter KO’d Radach with a deceiving punch combination that floored the striker. No one has ever knocked out Horwich in his 34 fights.

Ricardo Almeida recently fought at UFC 86 "Jackson vs Griffin," losing a close decision to Patrick Cote. It was a disappointing follow up to his UFC debut against Rob Yundt in February. The 31 year old definitely made an impact, choking out Yundt in just over a minute of the very first round.

Reljic Down to Middleweight to Face Thales Leites
The UFC also announced that Croatian Goran Reljic will be dropping down to 185lbs at UFC 90 to take on ground specialist Thales Leites in what should be an all out war. The undefeated Reljic made an outstanding debut back at UFC 84 when he shut down American Top Team’s Wilson Gouveia with a flurry of punches.

Thales Leites took part in a back and forth battle with Nate Marquardt at UFC 85 "Bedlam" that could be a candidate for fight of the year. The young Brazilian took the decision away from Marquardt who had clearly won the fight but was forced to give up two point for illegal strikes.

UFC 90, which takes place on October 25 at the Allstate Arena, will feature a main event between Anderson Silva and Patrick Cote.

Stay tuned for more UFC 90 fight card updates and hardcore MMA news!