Heavyweight contenders Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Cheick Kongo will square off Saturday, Dec. 29 at UFC 79 in Las Vegas, Nev. The winner will likely emerge as a frontrunner to become the next challenger to UFC Heavyweight Champion Randy Couture’s throne.

Nogueira (30-4-1, 1-0 UFC), one of the world’s most respected heavyweights, has never been stopped in 35 professional bouts.

Two of his losses came at the hands of PRIDE Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko; the other two were by split decision to Dan Henderson and Josh Barnett.

The 31-year-old Brazilian defeated Heath Herring by unanimous decision in his promotional debut at UFC 73 in July, though Herring nearly ruined his night with a first-round head kick. Nogueira has won six of his last seven fights.Kongo, meanwhile, will enter the fight on the heels of the most important win of his career, a unanimous decision victory over former PRIDE Open Weight Grand Prix Champion Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic at UFC 75 in September. The French kickboxer is 6-1 over his past seven fights, the lone loss a split decision defeat to Carmelo Marrero at UFC 64 last October.