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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
Next weekend's UFC 123 event has gotten a shakeup to the preliminary card, as Darren Elkins has been forced out of a scheduled bout with Edson Barbosa on the card due to a knee injury, according to a report from MMAFighting.com.
In his place steps UFC newcomer Mike Lullo to face Barbosa on a week's notice. Lullo is an 8-2 professional, who has won eight straight fights since dropping two decisions to begin his career. His last six wins have all been by submission, and he pulled off a gogoplata in a fight in June.
Barbosa is also making his UFC debut in this fight, and brings a 6-0 career record into the event. He's won all of his fights by stoppage, including five by knockout or TKO.
UFC 123 airs live on pay-per-view next Saturday from The Palace at Auburn Hills, just outside of Detroit, Mich. The event is headlined by a light heavyweight bout between Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Lyoto Machida.
Penick's Analysis: Injuries are always unfortunate, and it's a definite setback for Elkins as he was looking to rebound from a loss to Charles Oliveira, but it has opened up a great opportunity for Lullo on short notice. It's on the preliminary card, so it's not likely to make the broadcast, but both newcomers will have a chance to impress both the fans in Detroit and UFC officials as the lightweight division will be getting downsized drastically with the influx of WEC talents.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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