The UFC 230 shakeup continues.
Following an injury to Luke Rockhold which forced the former champion out of his co-main event clash with Chris Weidman, middleweight contender Jacare Souza was moved from his main card bout with David Branch to fill in for Rockhold. As a result, Branch was left without an opponent.
Not to fear.
According to a recent report by ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, which was later confirmed by MMAjunkie, Jared Cannonier will step up to fight Branch at UFC 230 on Nov. 3 in New York City.
Jared Cannonier has accepted the fight against David Branch, per Dana White. Branch stays on the UFC 230 card, after Jacare moves to Weidman.
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) October 20, 2018
Cannonier, 34, was scheduled for his middleweight debut against Alessio Di Chirico at UFC Fight Night 140 on Nov. 17 in Argentina. Instead, “Killa Gorilla” will cut his camp short and make his way to New York City for a high-profile bout with Branch. Cannonier, who started his career off in UFC as a heavyweight, will try to end a two-fight losing skid which includes a recent knockout loss to light heavyweight phenom Dominick Reyes.
While this isn’t the fight Branch signed up for, it’s a nice consolation prize considering he could have been removed from UFC 230 all together. A matchup with Souza certainly offers more for Branch at 185 pounds, but Cannonier is no slouch. The two middleweights should turn in a memorable fight on a card riddled with injuries and last-second changes.
UFC 230 will take place on Nov. 3 live on pay-per-view (PPV) from inside Madison Square Garden and feature a heavyweight main event between current champion Daniel Cormier and heavy-hitter Derrick Lewis.
For complete UFC 230 fight card news click here.