Pat Barry vs Joey Beltran set for "UFC Fight for the Troops 2"

An exciting heavyweight match up has been added to the new January 22nd show.

Pat Barry, who currently holds a 2-2 record within the organization, is hoping to bounce back from a disappointing loss to former PRIDE champion, Mirko Cro Cop at ufc 115 last June, with a win over glorified heavyweight, Joey Beltran.

Possibly two of the smallest men in the heavyweight division, with Barry standing at 5’11 and Beltran weighing in no more than 240 pounds or so (when in reality, he could very well drop to the light heavyweight division), don’t judge a book by it’s cover. While both these men in stature don’t match up with the elite in the weight class, both pack a mean punch.

Barry, a K-1 veteran who trains with the famed Duke Roufus in Milwaukee, Wisc., was riding a huge win heading into his bout with Mirko, a man whom he considers his idol.

At UFC 104, Barry was pitted against his former team mate in Antoni Hardonk. From there, the talented kick boxer put on a clinic. The faster of the two heavyweights, Barry struck first and often, and in the second-round Pat sealed the deal with a right hand that dropped the Dutchman to the floor, a few additional blows and the bout was halted midway through the bout, and “HD” recorded the biggest win of his career. Along with the victory, the 31-year-old also picked up “Fight of the Night” and “Knockout of the Night” awards for his efforts.

However, in his bout with Cro Cop, a fellow K-1 veteran, Barry did not fare so well. After two closely contested rounds, where in the first saw Barry drop the wily veteran twice with an over hand right, Filipovic came storming back for the third. A late blitz stunned Barry, and Mirko followed him to the ground, locked in a rear-naked choke and submitted Pat for the victory, picking up the “Submission of the Night” award along the way.

Beltran, likewise, is looking to bounce back from a loss–his first, inside the UFC.

After debuting within the organization at UFC 109, as a late replacement for Mostapha Al-Turk, Joey took on the daunting task of defeating the first Gracie-heavyweight that fought within the worlds largest organization. However, Beltran did not disappoint, where in the second round he was able to take advantage of a gassed Rolles Gracie, eventually landing on top of the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, and recording the TKO victory when the Greg Jackson product did not intelligently defend himself.

He followed up the victory with a unanimous decision victory over Tim Hague at UFC 113, controlling all of the action on the feet and on the ground en route to the judges decision, before meeting with heavyweight prospect, Matt Mitrione. Joey had the edge in experience over “Meat head”, who entered the bout with only 2 professional bouts to his credit, however skill beat experience, and Mitrione was able to get the better of the stand up exchanges, and was ultimately rewarded the unanimous decision victory.

“UFC Fight for the Troops 2″, or “UFC Fight Night 23″ is set to take place in Fort Hood, Killeen, Tex. on January 22. MMAJunkie.com confirmed the match up with Barry after tweeting the validity of the bout.

So, MMA peeps, what do you make of the match up? Sound off in the comment section below.