The UFC’s upcoming Abu Dhabi PPV card suffered a big blow recently with the loss of a top-shelf lightweight bout between former champion Rafael dos Anjos, and rising contender Islam Makhachev. The bout seemed like a big step for the longtime training partner of Khabib Nurmagomedov, on his path to a potential title shot.
Fortunately for the Dagestani fighter, it looks like he’s still got a top tier fight in front of him. ESPN’s Brett Okamoto reports that top-ranked City Kickboxing standout Dan Hooker has agreed to step in and take RDA’s place for the October 30th bout.