A bitter Ultimate Fighter rivalry will be settled Down Under.
With Seo Hee Ham injured, Lisa Ellis will step in to face Bec Rawlings at UFC Fight Night: Hunt vs. Miocic on May 10 in Adelaide, Australia, the UFC confirmed Thursday night on its Australian Twitter page. Rawlings, an Aussie, had multiple conflicts with Ellis on The Ultimate Fighter 20.
MMA Kanvas was the first to report the fight change.
Rawlings (5-4) fell in the first round of the TUF 20 tournament to Tecia Torres and also lost at the Ultimate Fighter Finale to Heather Jo Clark by unanimous decision in December. Rawlings, 26, is, however, an aggressive, tough-nosed striker and former Invicta FC women’s strawweight No. 1 contender. She has become one of the more popular members of the women’s 115-pound division.
Ellis (15-9), a pioneer of women’s MMA, also lost in the first round of the show, to Jessica Penne and fell at the TUF Finale by second-round submission to Felice Herrig. The 32-year-old veteran owns notable wins over the likes of Aisling Daly and Jessica Aguilar.
The injury to Ham (15-6) was not immediately known. The 28-year-old South Korean striker made her UFC debut at the TUF Finale in December, falling to Joanne Calderwood via unanimous decision.
UFC Fight Night 65 is headlined by a heavyweight contender matchup between Stipe Miocic and Mark Hunt. Brad Tavares takes on Robert Whittaker in the co-main event. The card marks the first UFC one ever in South Australia.