Rafael dos Anjos
British striker ‘Relentless’ Paul Taylor has reportedly suffered an undisclosed injury while training and has been forced to withdraw from his upcoming UFC on FUEL TV 4 bout versus ‘The Assassin’ Anthony Njokuani (15-6, 1NC).
The report comes from Fighters Only Magazine who also names Brazilian lightweight Rafael dos Anjos (16-6) as Taylor’s replacement.
UFC on Fuel TV: Muñoz vs Weidman (aka UFC on FUEL TV 4) is expected to take place on July 11, 2012 at HP Pavilion in San Jose, California. Headlining will be a middleweight bout between Mark Munoz and Chris Weidman. The Taylor vs. Njokuani bout was to have appeared on the Fuel TV broadcast, but with the opponent change UFC officials may opt to swap it with another bout.
Dos Anjos earned a quick finish a week ago at UFC on FUEL TV 3, finishing Kamal Shalorus with a rear naked choke in the first round of their bout in Virginia. The win allowed Dos Anjos to bounce back from a split decision loss to Gleison Tibau at UFC 139 last November. Dos Anjos is 5-4 in the UFC since debuting in November 2008 at UFC 91.
Njokuani was also in action one month ago, defeating John Makdessi by unanimous decision at UFC 145 in Atlanta, Georgia. The two battled in a 158-lbs catchweight bout after Makdessi failed to make weight. The victory was Njokuani’s first since losing to Danny Castillo at UFC 141 by split decision. Njokuani is currently 2-2 in the UFC.