Cameron Saaiman gets new UFC 290 opponent after Christian Rodriguez withdrawal

Rising South African bantamweight Cameron Saaiman has a new UFC 290 opponent.

With Christian Rodriguez out due to injury, “The Ultimate Fighter 24” cast member Terrence Mitchell (15-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC) is expected to face Saaiman (8-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) on the prelims of the July 8 event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Two people with knowledge of the matchup recently informed MMA Junkie of it but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. Verbal agreements are in place with bout contracts already issued.

Mitchell, 33, enters his UFC debut on a 12-fight winning streak. All of his career wins have come inside the distance. In 2016, Mitchell competed on “TUF 24,” and lost an exhibition bout to future UFC interim title challenger Kai Kara-France.

Since the reality series, Mitchell has competed four times in seven years with all bouts on the Alaska regional scene, where all of his professional fights have taken place.

Saaiman, 22, has won both of his UFC bouts after a contract-earning performance on “Dana White’s Contender Series” in August. He made his promotional debut in December when he finished Steven Koslow with punches. In March, Saaiman defeated Mana Martinez via majority decision.

With the addition, the UFC 290 lineup includes:

• Champion Alexander Volkanovski vs. Yair Rodriguez – for featherweight title
• Champion Brandon Moreno vs. Alexandre Pantoja – for flyweight title
• Dricus Du Plessis vs. Robert Whittaker
• Dan Hooker vs. Jalin Turner
• Tresean Gore vs. Bo Nickal
• Niko Price vs. Robbie Lawler
• Sean Brady vs. Jack Della Maddalena
• Denise Gomes vs. Yazmin Jauregui
• Jesus Aguilar vs. Shannon Ross
• Vitor Petrino vs. Marcin Prachnio
• Kamuela Kirk vs. Esteban Ribovics
• Jimmy Crute vs. Alonzo Menifield
• Terrence Mitchell vs. Cameron Saaiman

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 290.