With Lerone Murphy out, David Onama targeted vs. Nate Landwehr for UFC Columbus

David Onama is fresh off the biggest win of his career and he’s looking to strike while the iron is hot.

Stepping in on short notice, Onama (9-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) will replace Lerone Murphy when he battles Nate Landwehr (15-4 MMA, 2-2 UFC) at UFC on ESPN 33, pending bout finalization.

Two people with knowledge of the matchup verbal agreements are in place but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. Onama’s management Iridium Sports Agency first announced the news. It is unclear why Murphy is no longer in the bout.

UFC on ESPN 33 takes place March 26 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. The main card airs on ESPN after prelims on ESPN/ESPN+.

The first Ugandan fighter in UFC history, Onama has split his UFC appearances. After a thrilling, back-and-forth debut against Mason Jones, which he lost via unanimous decision, Onama ran through Gabriel Benitez at UFC Fight Night 201. Five weeks later, he’ll step back into the cage.

Landwehr is a former M-1 Global champion, who has had ups and downs thus far in his four-fight UFC tenure. He’s alternated losses and wins thus far in the promotion, with his most recent fight a submission against Ludovit Klein.

With the change, the UFC on ESPN 33 lineup includes:

• Curtis Blaydes vs. Chris Daukaus
• Max Griffin vs. Neil Magny
• Sara McMann vs. Karol Rosa
• Tucker Lutz vs. Seungwoo Choi
• Askar Askarov vs. Kai Kara-France
• Danaa Batgerel vs. Montel Jackson
• Bryan Barberena vs. Matt Brown
• Nate Landwehr vs. David Onama
• Alexa Grasso vs. Joanne Wood
• Aliaskhab Khizriev vs. Abusupiyan Magomedov
• David Dvorak vs. Matheus Nicolau
• Marc Diakiese vs. Viacheslav Borshchev
• Luis Saldana vs. Bruno Souza
• Ilir Latifi vs. Aleksei Oleinik