On Saturday at UFC 162, Tim Kennedy makes his UFC debut after 12 years as a professional MMA fighter, including three in the now-defunct Strikeforce organization, where he once vied for the promotion’s middleweight belt. It’s long overdue, and yet Kennedy looks at the booking as bittersweet. And no, it’s got nothing to do with his fight purse . Although he’s fighting Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace Roger Gracie (6-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) on the pay-per-view card’s swing bout, the always-outspoken Kennedy (15-4 MMA, 0-0 UFC) said he’d much rather be paired against a UFC veteran. Fighting in Strikeforce, he constantly was being compared to the middleweights in the industry-leader and asked about whether he measured up to the UFC roster. Ever since the California-based promotion was shuttered, he’s been a cheerleader for Strikeforce fighters as they transition into the octagon. “Now, I’ll just be cheering for myself,” the Special Forces veteran told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “I’ll be like, ‘Great overhand right, Tim!’ ‘Good takedown!’ ‘Oh-oh, watch out for his guard.