By: MMAmania
It’s “Bedlam” all over again with UFC Fight Night 17.
The first-ever event for the promotion in Tampa, Fla., has been riddled with injuries and last-minute replacements in the past week. Main event attraction Hermes Franca and The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 7 winner Amir Sadollah were recently scratched.
Now you can add George Sotiropolous to the hit list.
The Australian — who gained notoriety on season six of TUF — suffered an injury while training, which has forced him off the Spike TV special. Sotiropolous has had a run-in with injuries recently, keeping him out of action since a dominating technical knockout win over fellow TUF contestant Roman Mitichyan at UFC Fight Night 13 last April.
Hopefully, he can bounce back sooner rather than later. For now, undefeated promotional newcomer Matt Veach will take his place against newly anointed Oklahoma police officer, Matt Grice.
Veach recently turned professional and hasn’t looked back since, winning all 10 of his fights in little more than two years worth of work. And he’s done it impressively with stoppages in 90 percent of those contests mostly by way of submission.
Grice was on a personal leave from the UFC to pursue a career in local law enforcement. He hasn’t been seen in the Octagon since his battle against Jason Black at last year’s UFC 77. The two put on a stellar three-round war that garnered “Fight of the Night” honors and some much deserved buzz about their respective futures.
His fighting future now includes a showdown with Veach, which will be relegated to the non-televised portion of the Spike TV card.
UFC Fight Night 17 will feature a main event between TUF 5 alum Joe Lauzon against budding lightweight talent, Jeremy Stephens, in the main event. Stephens recently replaced the injured Hermes Franca. The fight between Catone and Downey will more than likely not be guaranteed to air during the televised portion of the Spike TV broadcast.
To check out the latest UFC Fight Night 17 fight card and rumors click here.
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