UFC Vegas 78: Da’Mon Blackshear Gets José Johnson as Replacement
José Johnson is coming in as a late replacement to face Da’Mon Blackshear at UFC Vegas 78 this weekend.
Blackshear was supposed to face Brady Hiestand at UFC Vegas 78. But, Hiestand had to pull out due to a staph infection last week. UFC was looking for a new opponent for Blackshear after that.
Marcel Dorff of Eurosports is now reporting that José Johnson will be coming in on a short notice to face Blackshear in a bantamweight bout. This will be Johnson’s UFC debut.
🚨🚨Breaking/Fight Saved🚨🚨
— Marcel Dorff 🇳🇱🇮🇩 (@BigMarcel24) August 8, 2023
Da'Mon Blackshear will fight on Saturday at #UFCVegas78. He takes on late replacement José Johnson in Las Vegas. pic.twitter.com/gjKLwJQuNr
After earning a contract through Dana White Contender Series 2022, Johnson had been booked twice to make his UFC debut. First against Vince Morales in November 2022, and then against Garrett Armfield in February this year. However, he pulled out both times due to injury.
Blackshear will be fighting for the third time this year after losing to Farid Basharat at UFC 285 and beating Luan Lacerda at UFC Vegas 74.
UFC Vegas 78 is set to take place on Saturday, August 12, at UFC Apex Arena in Las Vegas, NV. It is set to be headlined by a welterweight bout between Vincente Luque and Rafael dos Anjos.