Legacy Fighting Alliance featherweight champ Bruno Souza
will step in on short notice to face Melsik
Baghdasaryan at UFC 268 on Saturday.
Souza is a replacement for T.J.
Laramie, who recently announced his
withdrawal from the event due to an MRSA infection.
MMA DNA was first to report the new pairing. UFC 268 takes
place at Madison Square Garden in New York and is headlined by a
welterweight title rematch between Kamaru
Usman and Colby
Covington.
A protégé of former UFC title holder Lyoto
Machida, Souza has been victorious in 10 of his first 11
professional outings. The 25-year-old known as “The Tiger” captured
featherweight gold with a unanimous verdict against Javier
Garcia at LFA 114 on Aug. 27. He also owns notable wins over
UFC talent Kamuela
Kirk and Bellator veteran Mike
Hamel.
Anchored at Glendale Fighting Club, Baghdasaryan is a former
competitor on Dana White’s Contender Series. Though he didn’t
initially earn a contract with his win over Dennis
Buzukja in 2020, he made his Octagon debut at UFC on ESPN 28,
where he knocked out Collin
Anglin in the second round.