An injury has forced World Series of Fighting to change its main event on Jan. 18.
Justin Gaethje will now face Richard Patishnock for the inaugural WSOF lightweight title after Lewis Gonzalez suffered an injury, the promotion’s executive vice president Ali Abdel-Aziz informed MMAFighting.com on Wednesday.
Patishnock (6-1) is 2-0 under the WSOF banner, defeating Igor Gracie at WSOF 2 and Gregor Gracie at WSOF 5. He was scheduled to fight Luis Palomino on the card, and now the promotion is seeking a new opponent to fight Palomino.
Gaethje (10-0) is 3-0 in WSOF, most recently defeating Dan Lauzon via second-round knockout at WSOF 6. The 25-year-old is considered to be one of the organization’s rising stars.
WSOF 8, which will be headlined by the 155-pound title fight, will take place at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla., and the main card will air on NBCSN. Also announced for the card are Anthony Johnson vs. Mike Kyle, Jessica Aguilar vs. Alida Gray for the inaugural women’s strawweight title and Tyson Nam vs. Cody Bollinger.
Watch Patishnock take on Igor Gracie from WSOF 2 in March 2013 below: