Two weeks before he was set to return to action at UFC 230, a change in opponents moved perennial contender Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza up the fight card and one step closer to challenging for middleweight gold.
Initially scheduled to face David Branch, Souza was tabbed to replace Luke Rockhold in the co-main event on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden in a fight against Chris Weidman when Rockhold was forced out of the rematch between the former champions with an undisclosed injury.
A former champion under the Strikeforce banner, Souza has been entrenched in the Top 10 since matriculating to the UFC and a fixture in the Top 5 for the last several years, but the chance to fight for the middleweight title has always escaped him.