Kirill Sidelnikov made an unsuccessful debut at January’s Affliction pay-per-view where he suffered a third round TKO to Paul Buentello. The 20-year old prodigy is an M-1 veteran who trains alongside WAMMA heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko on The Imperial Team (formerly known as Russian Red Devil).

The CSAC sent out a press release today informing the press of his failed drug test and confirming the one-year suspension and $2,500 fine.

Sidelnikov, 5-3 overall in his MMA career, lost via TKO when he suffered facial cuts and was not allowed to continue the fight. His debut was highly anticipated but he did not hold up his end of the bargain as he seemed out of shape and quickly gassed early in the fight against the UFC veteran.

CSAC Assistant Executive Officer Bill Douglas explained that the mere presence of Stanozol in a fighter’s system constitutes a violation under the new procedures implemented recently by the CSAC.

The fight will be a part of HDNet’s telecast of the event’s undercard, which will be anchored by a light heavyweight bout between Vladimir Matyushenko and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira.

The addition of Sidelnikov is intriguing because he is one of the world’s top fighters under the age of 21 and his fight with Buentello will mark the first time the young Russian has competed on U.S. soil.

Nicknamed “Baby Fedor” by his mentors with the Russian Red Devil fight team, Sidelnikov is 4-2 in his young career. The 20-year old is considered a prodigy and a potential successor to Emelianenko as Russia’s top heavyweight fighter.

Competing exclusively for Vadim Finkelstein’s M-1 promotion, Sidelnikov is considered a dangerous puncher with all four of his victories having been stopped in the first round. His most recent bout took place in September during an M-1 Challenge event in the United Kingom, where he was victorious against James Jack.

Buentello is 26-10 in an MMA career that dates back to 1997. In addition to having competed for the UFC, Buentello has also fought for Strikeforce. He holds notable wins over David “Tank” Abbott, Justin Eilers, and Mike Kyle. His most recent fight was a unanimous decision victory over Gary Goodridge during Affliction’s debut event this past July.

The reporting of the Buentello vs. Sidelnikov brings the “Day of Reckoning” card into greater focus, with a tentative lineup appearing as follows:

• Fedor Emelianenko vs. Andrei Arlovski (officially announced)
• Josh Barnett vs. TBA (Barnett is being featured in advertisements)
• Matt Lindland vs. Renato “Babalu” Sobral (officially reported)
• Chris Horodecki vs. Dan Lauzon (rumored)
• Jay Hieron vs. Jason High (officially reported)
• Vitor Belfort vs. TBA (officially reported)
• Antonio Rogerio Nogueira vs. Vladimir Matyushenko (officially reported for the undercard)
• Paul Buentello vs. Kiril Sidelnikov (officially reported for the undercard)

Both fighters will be coming off of losses with Lauzon losing to Kenny Florian back in April at UFN 13 and Kyle Bradley losing in a welterweight contest against the ever tough Chris Lytle.

This is a good match-up in my mind as both fighters were fairly hot prospects going into their last bouts. Lauzon looked to be holding his own in his match with a highly ranked lightweight in Florian while Bradley didn’t get to show much in the whirlwind of fists that was Hurricane Lytle back at UFC 81.

The current rumored card for UFN 15 looks like this:

• Mac Danzig vs. Clay Guida
• Nate Diaz vs. Josh Neer
• Houston Alexander vs. Eric Schafer
• Ed Herman vs. Alan Belcher
• Joe Lauzon vs. Kyle Bradley

Read more UFN 15 content on FiveOuncesOfPain.com.

A message on the Underground forum at MMA.tv was left under the official account for Rich Clementi that congratulates Bradley on his “first fight coming up in the UFC.”

Clementi did not specify when Bradley will be debuting or who he’ll debuting against.

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