Light heavyweight Thiago Silva has been forced off the UFC 117 card, reportedly with a back injury, and will be replaced by Todd Brown against Tim Boetsch.
MMA Weekly first reported the Silva news on Tuesday, and MMA Fighting has confirmed with Brown that he has been signed to the organization and will make his promotional debut on short notice at the Aug. 7 event in Oakland, Calif.
Brown told MMA Fighting first that the UFC contacted him two days ago, and the short notice didn’t matter to him.
“I was ready to sign,” Brown said. “This is the result of a lot of work. My game will be the same no matter who I fight.”