Jeremy Stephens vs. Jonathan Brookins likely for The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale

by Steven Marrocco and Dann Stupp on Feb 16, 2011 at 1:00 pm ET
A lightweight bout between veteran Jeremy Stephens (19-6 MMA, 6-5 UFC) and "The Ultimate Fighter 12" winner Jonathan Brookins (12-3 MMA, 1-0 UFC) is in the works for June.

A source close to the event told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) the two fighters are expected to meet at The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale.

The fight, which will be one of the few not associated with the reality series' conclusion, takes place June 4 at The Pearl at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas.

Stephens vs. Brookins likely will be part of the Spike TV-televised main card, which also crowns a "TUF 13" show champion.

Stephens enters the fight on a 3-1 run in the organization, which included a recent third-round knockout of Marcus Davis at UFC 125. The win, which earned Stephens a third "KO of the Night" bonus check, followed a close split-decision defeat to Melvin Guillard in September. Prior to that loss, the Iowa native and California-based fighter earned back-to-back wins over Justin Buchholz and Sam Stout.

He'll serve as a stern post-"TUF" test for Brookins, the focused and likable winner from the recent 12th season of the reality show. Brookins, a one-time Bellator and WEC fighter, defeated Ran Weathers, Sevak Magakian, Sako Chivitchian and Kyle Watson to advance to the show's live finale, where he ultimately defeated Michael Johnson via unanimous decision back in December. He now owns a four-fight win streak in pro competition.