Another Canadian has dropped out of next month’s Toronto show. Halifax’s Roger Hollett has been forced to withdraw from his scheduled UFC 152 bout against Matt Hamill and will be replaced by Vladimir Matyushenko, a source told Sportsnet’s (Showdown) Joe Ferraro.
The card will take place on Sept. 22 at the Air Canada Centre and is headlined by the flyweight title bout between Joseph Benavidez and Demetrious Johnson. Michael Bisping and Brian Stann meet in the co-main event.
Hollett, who suffered an undisclosed injury, was set to make his UFC debut. The former MFC light-heavyweight champion is on a five-fight winning streak. He last fought in November in Rama, Ont., winning a split-decision over John Hawk in his first fight with Bellator in a tournament qualifier. But he was then offered a UFC contract earlier this month.
Hamill is coming out of retirement to fight for the first time since August 2011. He left the UFC after consecutive losses to 205-pound contenders Quinton (Rampage) Jackson and Alexander Gustafsson.
Matyushenko, 41, is also coming off a loss to Gustafsson at UFC 141 on Dec. 30.
The main card was originally expected to feature a welterweight bout between B.C.’s Rory (Ares) MacDonald and B.J. Penn, but MacDonald was forced to pull out earlier this month after suffering a facial laceration that required 38 stitches. It was the first fight announced for the show. The two are still expected to meet at a later date.
UFC 152 still features three Canadians: T.J. Grant of Cole Harbour, N.S., faces Evan Dunham in a lightweight bout on the main card; Pickering, Ont.’s Sean Pierson meets Dan Miller in an undercard welterweight tilt and Sudbury, Ont.’s Mitch Gagnon takes on Walel Watson in a preliminary fight.
