Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone may have a new opponent set, as Combate in Brazil reports that Alex “Cowboy” Oliveira has agreed to step in on just over two weeks notice for the UFC Fight Night 83 main event bout. According to a follow up report from MMAFighting.com, the only hold up on that fight happening is Oliveira obtaining a work visa in a short amount of time.
Cerrone was scheduled to face Tim Means in his welterweight debut on that Feb. 21 card in Pittsburgh, but Means was pulled from the fight on Wednesday after getting flagged in an out of competition test by USADA for a potential violation of the anti-doping policy.
Oliveira continues to jump around, heading back up to welterweight after his lightweight return in November. The Brazilian has won three straight since a submission loss to Gilbert Burns in his debut, a fight he was controlling until Burns made a comeback in the third round.
Penick’s Analysis: This is absolutely a gimmick booking to plaster “Cowboy” vs. “Cowboy” on posters last minute, but it’s a workable fight. Oliveira looked good in knocking out Piotr Hallmann in his last fight, but there’s very little in this type of matchup for Cerrone. Of course, that means little to him anyway, so for a late replacement fight it works.
UPDATE: The UFC has officially announced the matchup, making it official for the new main event in Pittsburgh.
[Photo (c) Jayne Kamin-Oncea via USA Today Sports]
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