An injury has forced former The Ultimate Fighter winner Ryan Bader out of his scheduled showdown against rising star Glover Teixeira at UFC 160, and in his place steps heavy-handed New Zealander James Te Huna.
Te Huna accepts the fight with just over two months to go until the May 25 card going down at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
UFC officials announced the new matchup on Monday evening.
Training out of Australia by way of New Zealand, James Te Huna now joins his friend and countryman Mark Hunt on the UFC 160 show after he also accepted a late-notice bout against Junior dos Santos on the same card.
Te Huna comes to UFC 160 with a four-fight win streak and an overall record of 5-1 in the UFC, with his only loss coming to current top ranked light heavyweight contender Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 127 in 2011.
Since that time, Te Huna has roared back with four victories, including two by knockout. In his last two fights, Te Huna took out the ultra-tough Joey Beltran and then staged a comeback after almost succumbing to an early head kick courtesy of Ryan Jimmo to win at UFC on Fuel 7 in England in February.
Now Te Huna has his biggest opportunity since joining the UFC. He faces one of the fastest rising stars in the promotion in Brazilian Glover Teixeira.
Teixiera comes into the fight on an incredible 18-fight win streak, with three of those coming in the UFC. Most recently, Teixeira dispatched former UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson in a featured bout at UFC on Fox 6 in late January.
A longtime training partner and friend of UFC legend and Hall of Famer Chuck Liddell, Teixeira has been viewed as a serious title contender since day one in the UFC. He’ll look to continue that charge when he faces Te Huna in May.
The bout between Teixeira and Te Huna is expected to occupy a slot on the main card for UFC 160, which is headlined by UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez against top contender Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva.
Damon Martin is a Featured Columnist at Bleacher Report
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