Matt Hamill

("Bones" and "Osteoporosis" warm up before UFC 100. Photo courtesy of CombatLifestyle.)

According to reports on MMA Madness and The Garv, UFC light-heavyweights Jon Jones and Matt Hamill have agreed to face each other on the main card of the TUF 10 Finale (December 5th, Las Vegas). One of MMA's most exciting prospects, Jones (9-0) most recently submitted Jake O'Brien at UFC 100, following decision wins over Andre Gusmao and Stephan Bonnar. Hamill (6-2) could be Bones's toughest test yet. The TUF 3 vet has won back-to-back fights since his loss to Rich Franklin at UFC 88, scoring a TKO over Reese Andy at UFC 92 and a devastating head kick KO of Mark Munoz at UFC 96. It will be the first of a new four-fight deal for Jon Jones, who's now splitting his time between Tristar Gym and Greg Jackson's camp.

The light-heavyweight match between Matt Hamill and Brandon Vera — which was scheduled to open the broadcast of UFC 102 (August 29th, Portland) — has been canceled, as Hamill was forced to pull out of the fight due to a torn meniscus in his knee. Luckily, TUF 8 standout Krzysztof Soszynski was available to fill in, and he'll be taking on Vera in Hamill's place.

It'll be gut-check time for both fighters. K-Sos has looked fantastic in his current 3-0 run in the UFC, taking out Shane Primm and Brian Stann by kimura and knocking out Andre Gusmao at UFC 98, but he needs a win over a bigger-name opponent to establish himself as a true contender in the division. Meanwhile, Brandon Vera has gone from hot heavyweight prospect to 205-pound question mark during his time in the Octagon. He most recently chopped down Mike Patt with leg kicks at UFC 96, which got him back to the W column after a previous split-decision loss against Keith Jardine. A win against Soszynski would prove that the Truth is still a factor; a loss solidifies his status as a gatekeeping can-crusher.

('Okay, quit messing around now.  Where's the rest of my paycheck?')

Give the UFC credit, they can spot a nascent, kind-of-but-not-really grudge match in the making a mile away.  MMA Madness reports that Matt Hamill will meet Brandon Vera at UFC 101 in Philadelphia to see who has the chops to make it in the light heavyweight division and who will end up on the receiving end of an assholish celebration.

As you probably recall, Hamill head-kicked Vera’s friend and training partner, Mark Munoz, into a briefly frightening unconscious state, then paraded around the Octagon like he’d just hit a walk-off homerun in the last World Series game ever.  Hamill would later explain the celebration by pointing out that a) he’s deaf, so vibrations from an excited crowd get him really pumped, and b) he doesn’t head kick that many people, and this one was pretty sweet.

Watch Steve Cofield’s video interview with Brandon Vera and see if you aren’t suddenly glad that “The Truth’s” formerly-overpaid ass is sticking around in the UFC.  The best part is when he addresses Matt Hamill’s post-fight celebration after knocking out Vera’s friend and training partner, Mark Munoz, at UFC 96.  Hamill caught some flack for acting like he just made a half-court shot worth a million bucks during halftime at a Laker game, when all the while his opponent was still crumpled in a motionless heap against the cage.

As Vera explains at the 3:30 mark, winning a fight in the UFC (particularly by bonus-worthy KO) is actually a lot like winning the lottery:

Props to UFC.com, MMAWeekly, Sherdog, and CombatLifestyle.