ROSTER UPDATE: @Mmartinez_alex
steps in for Johnny Case at
#PFL1PFL 1 Friday, April 23
5:30P ET ESPN+ | 9P ET ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/eE4X9aSDu8— PFL MMA (@ProFightLeague)
April 6, 2021
Alex
Martinez will step in for Johnny Case
and face Loik
Radzhabov in a lightweight bout at the Professional Fighters
League’s season premiere event on April 23.
The promotion announced the news via social media on Tuesday.
Case’s removal from the card comes on the heels of his arrest for
domestic battery in Las Vegas this past Thursday.
TMZ Sports was first to report the news of Case’s arrest. PFL
did not make mention of Case’s legal issues in its
announcement.
Case released a statement via Instagram denying the allegations
against him.
“It is with a heavy heart that I announce I have been withdrawn
from the PFL tournament,” Case wrote. “I am absolutely crushed. All
of my hard work and sacrifices have been taken away [by]
allegations that are not true. I want to thank the few family
members and friends that have reached out to check on me. You don’t
know how much that means to me.
I’m sorry to my fans and supporters. I don’t know what the future
will hold for my career. I will tell my side of the story when the
time is right, but right now I just want to be with my family and
do what I can to get by in the meantime.”
A native of Paraguay, Martinez will make his PFL debut with a 7-0-1
record. The former Brave CF competitor has finished six of his
seven triumphs inside the distance.
Radzhabov was a finalist in the 2019 PFL season, falling to
Natan
Schulte in the lightweight finals via unanimous decision.