Gerald Harris Faces Newcomer Mario Miranda at UFN 21

Rising middleweight and former TUF cast-member Gerald Harris (14-2, 1-0 UFC) will look to follow up on his knockout-of-the-night performance at UFN 20, when he takes on UFC newcomer and BJJ specialist, Mario Miranda (11-0) at UFN 21 in North Carolina on March 31st.  MMA Junkie has the scoop:

Sources close to both competitors today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that bout agreements have been distributed and will be finalized in the coming days.

Despite failing to earn a UFC contract after his stint on TUF, Harris worked his way back to the big show on the heels of some impressive knockout victories.  Although he did earn the post-fight bonus in his bout against John Salter in January, Harris 's performance was a bit underwhelming in that he took three rounds to put Salter (who was a late replacement) away, while the stoppage, though justified, wasn't close to a true KO.  Nonetheless, Harris's combination of powerful wrestling and heavy hands is a danger to anyone.

Mario Miranda was rumored to be a cast-member on the upcoming 11th season of TUF, but it appears that the middleweight impressed the UFC brass enough to earn a contract outright.  Along with a BJJ black belt and Abu Dhabi tournament grappling experience, Miranda also brings an impressive wrestling background to the table which includes four Brazilian national championships in both Freestyle and Greco-Roman.  Splitting his training time between Black House with the Nogueiras and Anderson Silva, and AMC Pankration in Seattle with Matt Hume, the undefeated Miranda has all the tools to make waves in the UFC's middleweight division.

Current UFN 21 rumored card after the jump.

Kenny Florian vs. Takanori Gomi

Roy Nelson vs. Stefan Struve

Nate Quarry vs. Jorge Rivera

Ross Pearson vs. Dennis Siver

Cole Miller vs. Andre Winner

Yushin Okami vs. Lucio Linhares

Gleison Tibau vs. Caol Uno

Jason High vs. Charlie Brenneman

Gerald Harris vs. Mario Miranda*

* not yet confirmed