...OH, ONE MORE THING - PLEASE BOOKMARK US & VISIT DAILY!
By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
The UFC was quick to get replacement fights for two August events after both Thiago Silva and Phil Baroni were forced off of UFC 117 and UFC 118, respectively, today due to injury.
While Silva's originally scheduled opponent Tim Boetsch will get a UFC newcomer in Todd Brown, Baroni's scheduled UFC 118 opponent John Salter will receive a longtime veteran, as multiple published reports state that Salter will now face Dan Miller on the August 28 card.
Miller will be fighting for his UFC career after suffering losses in his last three fights. That stretch came against Chael Sonnen and Demian Maia, Anderson Silva's next and previous opponents Title challengers, and most recently Michael Bisping at UFC 114.
For his second straight fight Salter is subject to a late replacement, though this change is nowhere near as late as his UFC 113 bout. Initially scheduled to face Nick Catone, Salter was then expecting to face David Loiseau when Catone pulled out with an injury. Due to an issue with the Quebec commission, Loiseau was taken out of the fight and Salter faced Jason MacDonald on a week's notice.
UFC 118 airs live on Spike TV and pay-per-view on August 28 from the TD Garden in Boston, Mass., headlined by a Lightweight Title fight between B.J. Penn and Frankie Edgar.
Penick's Analysis: After going through an extremely difficult three fight stretch against a very high level of opponent, Miller steps in to a fight that is very much winnable for him. Salter's not a pushover, but Miller's a very talented fighter who will be desperate for a win in this fight. It's a major step up in competition for Salter from Baroni to Miller, as well, but he's got a month to prepare for the change in opponent.
Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
STAFF COLUMNISTS: Shawn Ennis - Jason Amadi
Frank Hyden - Rich Hansen
Chris Park - Matt Pelkey
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