Giga Chikadze gets late UFC on ESPN 8 replacement opponent after Mike Davis withdraws

Despite losing his original opponent, it appears Giga Chikadze will still fight at UFC on ESPN 8.

A person with knowledge of the situation confirmed to MMA Junkie late Thursday night that Titan FC bantamweight champion Irwin Rivera will meet Chikadze in a featherweight bout on less than 48 hours’ notice. Earlier Thursday, Mike Davis withdrew from the bout because of a medical issue not related to coronavirus, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.

News of Rivera (9-4 MMA, 0-0 UFC) serving as a replacement was first reported by Adjara Sport, and Rivera followed up with an announcement on Twitter.

Rivera, who trains out of Hard Knocks 365, lives in Delray Beach, Fla., about 300 miles south of Jacksonville where UFC on ESPN 8 will take place Saturday at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena. With the fight coming together on such short notice, it’s unclear if Rivera already has been tested for COVID-19 or if his testing will wait until Friday. Rivera had not responded to a request for confirmation as of early Friday morning, just 8 hours from official weigh-ins.

Rivera’s UFC debut will be his first fight in 2020 after going 3-0 last year, all finishes, which included claiming and defending the Titan FC 135-pound title.

Chikadze (9-2 MMA, 2-0 UFC) enters the bout on a four-fight winning streak, which includes back-to-back wins in the UFC over Jamall Emmers and Brandon Davis.

With the change, the UFC on ESPN 8 lineup now includes:

MAIN CARD (ESPN/ESPN+, 9 p.m. ET)

• Alistair Overeem vs. Walt Harris
• Claudia Gadelha vs. Angela Hill
• Edson Barboza vs. Dan Ige
• Eryk Anders vs. Krzysztof Jotko
• Marlon Vera vs. Song Yadong

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN/ESPN+, 6 p.m. ET)

• Miguel Baeza vs. Matt Brown
• Anthony Hernandez vs. Kevin Holland
• Giga Chikadze vs. Irwin Rivera
• Darren Elkins vs. Nate Landwehr
• Mara Romero Borella vs. Cortney Casey
• Don’Tale Mayes vs. Rodrigo Nascimento