The card will take place from Denver, Colorado with lightweight champion Benson Henderson‘s rematch with Frankie Edgar likely serving as the main event.

UFC President Dana White confirmed news of the match-up on Twitter, adding, “I like that fight!”

Shields (27-6-1) has won just one of his last three fights, defeating Yoshihiro Akiyama in February. Prior to the win he was beaten by Georges St-Pierre in a title-fight and Jake Ellenberger. However, Shields’ reputation is far better than his recent performances would indicate including past wins over Carlos Condit, Robbie Lawler, Yushin Okami, and Dan Henderson.

Herman (20-7) has racked up a 4-1 record over his last five fights including three straight wins since an injury-induced loss to Aaron Simpson.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

The fight has been confirmed by UFC officials.

Herman returned from a nearly 22-month layoff due to ACL and meniscus surgery this past June when he defeated Tim Credeur in just 48 seconds. Riding the momentum of the victory and not wanting to stay out of the cage for a long period of time, Herman took on Kyle Noke two months later. He defeated the Australian with a first round heel hook. That win pushed the Oregon native’s record in the UFC to 6-5 and 19-7 overall.

Starks made his UFC debut at UFC 137, defeating fellow UFC newcomer Dustin Jacoby by unanimous decision. A Division 1 wrestler at Arizona State, where he was teammates with UFC heavyweight Cain Velasquez, Starks has yet to taste defeat in eight career bouts.

UFC 143 is scheduled for February 4 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. The night will be headlined by a welterweight interim title fight between former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz and former WEC welterweight title-holder Carlos Condit.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

“I didn’t realize it, I didn’t know how bad it was, so I continued to fight, tried to answer the bell in the second-round. Came out to fight, I threw like a headkick or something and there was just nothing there underneath me. Me knee wasn’t there pretty much, so it folded underneath me,” Herman recently explained in a conversation with Fightline. “The ref told me in between rounds that he thought he saw my knee go, but he was going to let me continue if I wanted to go. My job is to fight. If the ref stops it, the ref stops it.”

However, though he suffered a torn ACL and damage to his meniscus, the 30-year appeared on track for a 2010 return when disaster struck a second time.

“I go through surgery, the healing process, all that, and I started training again in January. A couple of weeks in, I blew my ACL out again…so that was pretty rough for me, mentally and physically – financially, everything.”

The concept of a UFC veteran with nine bouts in the Octagon under his belt struggling on a fiscal level may seem far-fetched to some fans but reality often differs from perception, especially when considering a Mixed Martial Artist’s income is contingent on competition in terms of both sponsorship money and salary. It’s an issue rarely considered when fighters are sidelined for extended periods of time whether due to health-related problems or a lack of opportunity within the promotion but true nonetheless.

In Herman’s case the situation forced him to swallow his pride and return to the working world in order to pay bills while healing for an eventual return to the ring. Specifically, “Short Fuse” started bartending and bouncing as he had as an up-and-comer.

“It was fun when I was younger and single and stuff, but now that I’m a little older and I have a family, I’m not into the party scene anymore, so… it sucked. It just wasn’t fun. Talking to people, having everybody say, ‘Oh you’re that guy that used to fight in the UFC! Oh man, here’s an extra buck,’…people feeling sorry for me, that was hard to deal with.”

Fortunately, Herman pressed through the adversity with the mindset that things happen for a reason assisted by an upbringing where he grew up “working for everything” he had. His efforts paid off this past June at the Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale with an opening round knockout of always-tough Tim Credeur where he came away healthy enough to fight again later this month at UFC Live 5 against Kyle Noke.

“It’s been a struggle, so me getting the fight in June and getting that big win, it helped a lot,” Herman said with a sense of relief. “I’ve been able to pay off some debt, and kind of get back on my feet.”

Herman holds an overall record of 21-9 in his career with an impressive percentage of stoppages including six TKOs and thirteen submissions. Among the notches on his belt are wins over David Loiseau, Joe Doerksen, Glover Teixeira, Nick Thompson, Scott Smith, and Brian Ebersole.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Lawlor’s withdrawal from the August 14 event, and Herman’s addition, were both confirmed through an official statement on the UFC’s website.

The 22-9 Herman’s run in the UFC has been a mixed bag with notable wins over Joe Doerksen, David Louiseau, and Scott Smith but a number of losses as well. His overall record in the Octagon is 5-5 including a defeat to Kendall Grove in a TUF 3 final though he’d also racked up respectable victories over the likes of Nick Thompson and Glover Teixeira before ever joining the promotion. Herman has also impressively finished twenty of the twenty-two opponents he’s beaten.

Noke is on one of the middleweight division’s hottest streaks at the moment with five straight wins including a flawless run in the UFC with a trio of stoppages since debuting last June. Among his nineteen instances of in-ring success are wins over Rob Kimmons, George Sotiropoulos, and most recently Chris Camozzi at UFC 127.

The UFC’s upcoming visit to Milwaukee is headlined by what will undoubtedly be an entertaining scrap between Chris Lytle and Dan Hardy. The card is also scheduled to feature lightweight Jim Miller’s attempt to claim a title-shot by beating former WEC champ Ben Henderson, TUF 7 winner Amir Sadollah against seasoned veteran Duane Ludwig, and “Top 5” bantamweights Eddie Wineland and Joseph Benavidez in bout where viewers are advised to avoid blinking based on the fast-paced action sure to be at hand.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

News of their pairing was initially reported by HeavyMMA and has since been all but confirmed by Credeur by way of his Twitter account.

“I am so excited I am vibrating,” Credeur playfully explained while referring to the forthcoming fracas.

The 33-year old Louisianan hasn’t fought due to injury since a “Fight of the Night” performance, albeit a loss, opposite Nate Quarry at Ultimate Fight Night 19 in September 2009. Prior to the defeat Credeur had won six consecutive bouts including a trio inside the Octagon.

The fiery Herman has also been out of the mix for more than a year after shredding his knee while in the midst of a match-up with Aaron Simpson at UFC 102, then essentially repeating the feat months later while training for a return to the ring. “Short Fuse” is 21-9 in his career with past wins over a number of respected opponents such as Scott Smith, Joe Doerksen, Nick Thompson, Glover Teixeira, and David Louiseau.

The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale is set to be headlined by a bout between top lightweight contenders Clay Guida and Anthony Pettis as well as home to TUF 12 champ Jonathan Brookins’ follow-up to his hard-fought decision win over fellow finalist Michael Johnson. Brookins will take on stand-up savvy Jeremy Stephens in main card conflict.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Editors Note: It has recently been revealed that Gouveia has suffered a back injuury and will be unable to compete at UFC 102 as expected in a report from MMAJunkie.com. No news of a replacement opponent for Ed Herman in this musical chairs of injured fighters is available at this time.

With James Irvin sidelined due to a knee injury, Ed Herman (15-7 MMA, 4-4 UFC) has agreed to step in as a replacement and fight Wilson Gouveia (12-6 MMA, 6-3 UFC) on the preliminary card of UFC 102 on August 29 in Portland, Oregon.

The news of the expected match-up comes courtesy of a recent report by Sherdog.com.

Herman was originally supposed to face Aaron Simpson at UFC Fight Night 19 in September. While the bout is still posted on the UFC’s official website, it will now be canceled so Herman can meet Gouveia at UFC 102.

Herman last stepped into the Octagon in April, earning a unanimous-decision win over David Loiseau at UFC 97. The victory snapped a two-fight losing streak for Herman.

Gouveia is hoping to rebound from a third-round TKO loss to Nate Marquardt at UFC 95 in February. Gouveia had recorded back-to-back victories over Jason MacDonald and Ryan Jensen before his loss to Marquardt.

The expected card for UFC 102 is listed below:

MAIN CARD

Randy Couture vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
Keith Jardine vs. Thiago Silva
Chris Leben vs. Jake Rosholt
Demian Maia vs. Nate Marquardt
Krzysztof Soszynski vs. Brandon Vera

PRELIMINARY CARD

Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Chris Tuchscherer
Wilson Gouveia vs. Ed Herman
McCully vs. Mike Russow
Todd Duffee vs. Tim Hague
Nick Catone vs. Mark Munoz
Evan Dunham vs. Matt Veach

The event is set to take place at the Oklahoma Convention Center in Oklahoma on September 16.

Simpson recently announced the expected match-up on his Facebook page.

Simpson trains at Arizona Combat Sports along side the likes of Ryan Bader, Jamie Varner, C.B.Dollaway and Jacob McClintock. He is a two-time All American wrestler, and went on to coach for Arizona State. He is currently sporting an undefeated record of 5-0 with all of his wins coming by either KO or TKO.

Herman recently bounced back from three straight losses in the octagon by defeating David Loiseau at UFC 97 and will be looking to make it two in a row when he faces off with Simpson in September.

The website CagePlay.com was the first to report the possibility of the matchup and FiveOuncesOfPain.com has spoken with sources close to both fighters who confirmed the fight is indeed in the works. However, both sources were quick to add that nothing has been finalized.

If the fight becomes official, the bout would mark Loiseau’s first in the Octagon since a unanimous decision loss to Mike Swick at UFC 63 in September of 2006. Released by the UFC soon after the defeat, Loiseau has gone 4-2 outside of the promotion. His most recent victory took place this past September at XMMA 5, where he recorded a TKO over Solomon Hutcherson, a veteran from the third season of The Ultimate Fighter, at 1:56 of round 5.

Overall, Loiseau is 18-8 in his MMA career with a lifetime UFC record of 4-3 with notable wins over the late Evan Tanner, Mark Weir, Charles McCarthy and Gideon Ray. However, he might be best known for his unanimous decision loss against then-middleweight champion Rich Franklin at UFC 58 in March of 2006.

Herman, 14-7, is the middleweight runner-up from the third season of TUF having lost to Kendall Grove via unanimous decision in the finals.

A member of Team Quest in Portland, Oregon, Herman is coming off consecutive defeats inside the Octagon, first submitting to Demian Maia at UFC 83 and then losing a split decision to Alan Belcher at UFC Fight Night 15. With a lifetime record of 3-4 in the UFC, his wins in the promotion have come against Scott Smith, Chris Price, and Joe Doerksen.

Herman (14-6 MMA, 3-3 UFC) was a finalist for season 3 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” losing a tough, back-and-forth decision to Kendall Grove. He was offered and signed a contract with the UFC regardless, and has had fluctuating results since. His first fight after the show, he was systematically taken down and submitted by a fighter who was offered a spot on the same season but passed, Jason MacDonald.

Herman seemed to finally find his stride as a UFC fighter in 2007 with 3 straight wins against increasingly tougher competition, culminating with handing Joe Doerksen his first knockout loss of his career. In came 2008 and a loss to Demian Maia at UFC 83. Not much to take from that loss, as Maia has been exposing everyone he has faced to possibly the best submission game in the middleweight division, if no the whole UFC. Herman has shown his best attributes are his wrestling and overall ground game with improving stand up. He has also shown he still has a way to go with his takedown and submission defense, as well as overall conditioning.

Belcher (12-5 MMA, 3-3 UFC) is a fighter from Biloxi, Mississippi who may be slightly guilty of believing the hype of his nickname a little too much. “The Talent” has had an up and down UFC career starting by filling in for the oft-injured David Terrell at UFC 62 against Yushin Okami. Belcher lost a tough unanimous decision against Okami, but demonstrated that he belonged in the big leagues.

He followed with an impressive head-kick knockout of Jorge Santiago at UFC Fight Night 7, showing his impressive stand up skills also pack knockout power. A bit of a schizophrenic fighter, his performances are very erratic. He has excellent Muay Thai skills and decent wrestling to go with them, but his ground game is very rudimentary as he sports a blue belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. He may be an occasional victim of his own overconfidence, as demonstrated in his last fight at UFC 83 where he was to face Patrick Cote.

Cote succumbed to a knee injury two weeks before the fight and he was replaced with Jason Day, a first time UFC fighter. Belcher looked visibly relaxed and somewhat sloppy in the early going as Day asserted himself on the ground and then surprised Belcher on the feet with a hard elbow that open the floodgates to an impressive TKO victory over Belcher.

Both fighters come in with big expectations in the UFC. They are also coming off of disappointing losses with a “must-win” mentality and maybe just a little something to prove to themselves as well as everyone else. The oldest adage in our sport applies here, as it is striker versus grappler in this bout. Whoever can control the flow of this fight will win, with Herman wanting to take down Belcher and work his ground and pound while Belcher will try to keep it standing and work for the knockout on his feet with his superior striking.

Who wins the position battle? In my opinion Belcher has just enough take down defense to stave off a rather average single leg takedown that Herman possesses. This should enable him to expose Herman on the feet. Herman does not have a great chin as he has shown time and time again in his losses, and was even rocked a few times in his win over Doerksen. Belcher has very good knockout power in both his hands and feet, and should be able to keep the fight standing long enough to win via TKO.

Herman has very good potential that he has never seemed to be able to reach at Team Quest. I think he needs a change of surroundings with a new striking coach that can get through to him. I look for Belcher to win via TKO in round 2 and possibly give Herman a chance to look for that new camp after another disappointing loss.

This should be interesting because Schafer is a beast on the ground, a place where Alexander has shown to be inexperienced. Schafer is coming off a loss to Stephan Bonnar in his last appearance in the UFC but has since racked up two first round victories on the smaller circuits. Alexander is coming off a knockout loss to James Irvin and has now lost two in a row in the UFC. Both men need a victory here.

Roufus also posted that Alan Belcher will be taking on Ed Herman on the same card in a middleweight battle. Herman is coming off a technical submission to Demian Maia where he was caught in a mounted triangle and being beaten in the face at the same time. Belcher is also coming off a loss to Jason Day at UFC 83.

“I got back to Sao Paulo today; I was vacationing in California with my wife, where I also shot some Jiu-Jitsu dvds. I’ll be back at the UFC on March 8th to fight Ed Herman, who I don’t know, but my manager brought me a tape with some of his fights to analyze, but I haven’t had time to watch yet.”

On preparing for his next commitment, the black belt said: “At this moment I’m with my physical trainer putting together a training spreadsheet, since I’ll start today and starting next week training is going to be heavy, as I only have seven weeks till the fight. I’m going to put greater importance on the standup part, I don’t know if I’ll be able to practice Jiu-Jitsu the way I would like, but I will never neglect it, because that’s what resolves my fights for me.”

Maia is coming off a first-round submission victory against Ryan Jensen at UFC 77. The BJJ black belt is boasting a 6-0 MMA record with 5 of 6 of his victories coming in the first round.

Ed Herman is on a bit of a win streak, as he won all 3 of his fight in 2007. His two submissions and one knockout came against Chris Price, Scott Smith, and Joe Doerksen respectively.

An exact date and venue have not been announced by the UFC for UFC 83.

“This is a really good fight for me. He [Ed Herman] is obviously not an easy opponent, but style wise, we match up really well. This is a really good opportunity for me to get some of that notoriety and to get my name out there. I think he’s going to get hurt. If things go my way, he’s not going to make it out of the second round.”

I like Doerksen in the fight, that’s for sure. I think Ed Herman got the short end of the stick on this replacement. Usually when someone comes in to replace an injured fighter (see: Bo Cantrell), they’re on a lower level, skill-wise, than the person they were replacing. That’s not the case, here. Herman has his hands full with Doerksen, maybe even more so than if he was fighting David Terrell. Also considering that Doerksen already holds a victory over Herman, the ball is in Doerksen’s court.

Doerksen is an MMA veteran who has had many fights against top class opponents such as former welterweight champion Matt Hughes (loss), Denis Kang (win), Matt Lindland (loss) and Nate Marquardt (loss).

Also of note is that Doerksen already holds a win over Herman back in 2004 via 3rd round triangle choke. I also found it funny it was listed as a technical submission, which implies Herman, “went out like a man, rather than tapping like a bitch.”

This replacement will mark another unfortunate moment in Terrell’s promising career where he has had to pull out with injury. Examples of other cases were potential match ups with Yushin Okami at UFC 62 and then again at UFC 66.

David Terrell (6-2, 2-1 UFC) has not fought in Mixed Martial Arts competition since April of 2006 where he submitted Scott Smith by rear-naked choke at UFC 59.