Former UFC veteran Marcus “Irish Hand Grenade” Davis (18-8) had been scheduled to face former season 9 “TUF” alumni Richie Whitson at the upcoming MFC 30 event next month, but Whitson was forced to withdraw after suffering a broken foot while training.
“I knew it was broken but I thought I’d still be ready,” explained Whitson. “But my doctor wanted me to get an MRI and it showed that I not only had a broken foot, but a severe sprain and a badly torn tendon.
“I guess it’s the kind of thing that happens when you’re training every day, but it’s still really disappointing.”
Stepping in for Whitson will be Pete “Secret Weapon” Spratt (22-19) according to MMAWeekly.com. Spratt has already faced Davis once, back in April 2007 at UFC 69, a second round submission loss.
Spratt normally fights at 170 lbs, and it hasn’t been made clear if the rematch with Davis will be contested at lightweight or welterweight.
The Maximum Fighting Championships latest event, MFC 30: Up Close and Personal, is scheduled to take place on June 10 at the Mayfield Inn Trade and Conference Centre in Edmonton, Alberta and features a lightweight title bout between Drew Fickett vs. Hermes Franca.
Davis earned his first win with the Canadian promotion last month in his debut at MFC 29, by earning a split decision over Curtis Demarce. That was the “Irish Hand Grenade’s” first bout outside of the UFC after fourteen straight fights in the Octagon, a record of 9-5 in that span. Davis lost his last two UFC appearances, a knockout loss to Jeremy Stephens at UFC 125 after drop to lightweight, and a technical submission loss to Nate Diaz at UFC 118.
Spratt also appeared on the same MFC 29 card last month, earning a second round submission over Demi Deeds. It was “Secret Weapon’s” first win after two straight losses and puts his record at 2-3 in his last five fights. Previous to the victory he was forced to tap losses to Ryan Ford at MFC 27, and to Eric Davila at Shark Fights 13.