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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
In what seems like an incredibly odd move, Joe Riggs is returning to the UFC this September, replacing an injured Mike Rhodes against Paulo Thiago at UFC Fight Night 51 in Brasilia.
The news, first reported by Globo in Brazil, comes as a surprise, simply for the fact that Riggs is less than a year removed from winning the Bellator reality show competition "Fight Master" on Spike TV.
The 31-year-old "Diesel" hasn't fought in the UFC in nearly eight years, having hopped around a number of organizations during that time. That includes a lengthy stint in and out of Strikeforce.
He's won six fights in a row, capped off with a victory over Mike Bronzoulis last November in just his second Bellator appearance. It's not clear whether he was cut, or requested a release from Bellator, but he's cut ties and is on his way back to the Octagon.
As for Thiago, he's getting another chance to pick up a win after signing a new deal. That deal came despite losses in six of his last eight fights.
The UFC Fight Night 51 card airs live on Fox Sports 1 on Sept. 13, headlined by the heavyweight bout between Andrei Arlovski and Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva.
Penick's Analysis: This is just one of those fights that doesn't make sense on a couple of levels. Not only is Riggs coming off a win in Bellator's reality show, which isn't getting a second season and now doesn't have its winner in the organization, but him in the UFC in 2014 is just completely odd. The loser of this fight probably isn't on the roster after Sept. 13 - though Riggs may get a second fight win or lose if he's signed on for a few fights - and even though Riggs is on a winning streak, it seems extremely strange too have him brought back into the UFC at this point in his career.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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