Those scratching their heads at the odd pairing of Anthony Johnson and Jan Blachowicz at UFC 191 can stop worrying because the UFC has apparently had a change of heart.
According to a report from ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, Blachowicz has been pulled from the fight, and Johnson will now face top-10 light heavyweight fighter Jimi Manuwa on the September 5 Las Vegas fight card.
There hasn’t been any official word from the UFC of why the bout was changed, but Okamoto is reporting that Blachowicz is expected to remain in the UFC 191 lineup.
Johnson had his nine-fight win streak snapped in May by Daniel Cormier in a bout for the vacant light heavyweight title.
He had Cormier in trouble early in the first round when he dropped the former Olympian with a massive overhand right, but Cormier’s tenacious wrestling and suffocating top control kept him in the fight.
Johnson was taken apart piece by piece in a grinding effort, before succumbing to a rear naked choke in the third round. Since the loss, Johnson has made serious adjustments to his training camp.
When speaking with MMAFighting’s Shaun Al-Shatti, he said he is now working with Neil Melanson, a longtime grappling coach who has worked with Randy Couture, Dominick Cruz and Michael Chandler.
Manuwa will enter this fight coming off a unanimous decision win over Blachowicz in April. The 35-year-old UK star has shown plenty of promise during his three-year UFC tenure. His only loss came to current No. 1 contender Alexander Gustafsson.
UFC 191 features the flyweight championship rematch between Demetrious Johnson and John Dodson. A heavyweight tilt between former champions Andrei Arlovski and Frank Mir is also expected to be on the card.
Jordy McElroy is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He also is the MMA writer for FanRag Sports and co-founder of The MMA Bros.
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