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Phil Baroni vs. Brad Tavares official for “UFC 125: Resolution” prelims

A long-rumored matchup between “The Ultimate Fighter 11″ semifinalist Brad Tavares (5-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) and veteran fighter Phil Baroni (13-12 MMA, 3-6 UFC) is finally official for UFC 125.

UFC brass recently announced that the matchup, which was previously reported by MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com), will take place on the evening’s preliminary card.

“UFC 125: Resolution” takes place Jan. 1 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, and the night’s main card airs on pay-per-view.

The evening’s main event sees UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar defend his title against top challenger Gray Maynard.

After a semifinal finish on “TUF 11,” Tavares fought castmate Seth Baczynski at the show’s live finale in June. The Hawaii native and current Las Vegas-based fighter picked up a decision victory to move his record to 5-0.

Tavares has been on the sidelines since then, and the UFC 125 fight marks his first in six months.

Baroni, a 10-year vet who recently tried his luck at welterweight, looks to rebound from a November 2009 decision loss to “TUF 7″ winner Amir Sadollah. He hasn’t fought since then, and an injury forced him out of an August UFC 118 meeting with John Salter.

Baroni made his UFC debut back in 2001, and following a release in 2005, he had stints with PRIDE, Strikeforce, EliteXC and other top promotions before re-signing with the world’s largest mixed martial arts organization.

For the latest on UFC 125 stay tuned to the MMA Rumors section of MMAjunkie.com.