Ilir Latifi Steps in to Fight Against Gegard Mousasi at UFC on Fuel 9

The strange saga of Alexander Gustafsson and his cut continued last night as the UFC scrambled to find a late replacement for the Swedish fighter and turning to one of his training partners, Ilir Latifi, to step in. Ilir Latifi has mostly competed in Europe, his professional career dating back to 2008. Latifi has had a few breaks over the years, fighting for Sweden’s Rumble of the Kings and most recently for the Glory World Series events last year, where his biggest win over Tony Lopez came.

He now has to step into the UFC’c octagon against a guy that had a whole ton of hype behind him for a long time in Gegard Mousasi in Mousasi’s UFC debut. This is a big deal for Mousasi and a fight that he can win, as long as he stays away from illegal upkicks. [h/t]

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Dave Walsh is a writer residing in Albuquerque, New Mexico who is best known for his work as a Kickboxing and Mixed Martial Arts journalist. His work has been featured on a number of publications, including BloodyElbow.com, MiddleEasy.com, CageSideSeats.com, Heavy.com, MMANuts.com, as well as his own site, LiverKick.com. His first novel, The Godslayer, is on sale now.