After the success of airing a lot of the UFC 103 undercard live on SpikeTV prior to the PPV event, SpikeTV has stepped up to the plate again and will air UFC 104 prelims live. So far they have penciled in Ryan Bader vs. Eric Shafer and Antoni Hardonk vs. Pat Barry, but if UFC103 was our model to go off of, you might get a few more fights than that depending on the length. One hour prior to UFC 104, commercial free, get ready for some free fights. Everybody likes free stuff, right?
A two-time NCAA Division I All-American wrestler at Arizona State University, Ryan Bader, fighting out of Tempe, Ariz., is 2-0 in the UFC and a perfect 10-0 in his mixed martial arts career. The 26-year-old light heavyweight, winner of the eighth season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” earned a unanimous decision win against veteran Carmelo Marrero in April. He now faces another experienced grappler in “Red” Schafer. Fighting out of Milwaukee, Wisc., Schafer is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and on a four fight win streak, with two of his three UFC wins coming via submission. His most recent victory came via TKO against Antonio Mendes at UFC 93. Also featured, Dutch kickboxer Antoni Hardonk, a native of Amsterdam, fighting out of Los Angeles, has KOs in all four of his UFC wins. The 6-foot-4, 245-pound heavyweight has won three of his last four fights and is looking to continue his hot streak against veteran Pat Barry, fighting out of Milwaukee, Wisc. A native of New Orleans, Barry looks to repeat the performance he put on against Dan Evensen at UFC 92, an impressive first round KO.