Andre Petroski Steps Up on Short Notice Against Michel Pereira at UFC Vegas 81

The round robin of opponents to face Michel Pereira continues to turn.

At UFC Fight Night 230 on Oct. 14, Pereira (28-11) was slated to take on Marc-Andre Barriault. The Canadian was forced to withdraw for medical reasons, and fighting in his place will be Andre Petroski (10-1). Petroski posted news of this late replacement middleweight matchup on his Instagram on Thursday night, while Barriault confirmed his medical issue on Friday.

Pereira was initially slated to battle Stephen Thompson at UFC 291 in July, but he missed weight by three pounds ahead of their scheduled welterweight showdown. As a result, “Wonderboy” opted to not take the fight, the bout was canceled, and the promotion suggested that Pereira compete at 185 pounds going forward. “Demolidor” is currently riding a five-fight win streak, which is his longest winning stretch since a triumphant span of seven straight from 2013 to 2014. Along his way up the welterweight ranks, the Brazilian topped names like Santiago Ponzinibbio and Niko Price.

Like his new opponent, Petroski has currently won five straight bouts. His most recent victory came against Ultimate Fighting Championshipmiddleweight mainstay Gerald Meerschaert at UFC 292 via split decision in August. Submissions of Nick Maximov and Yaozong Hu bolstered his record while moving his career finish rate to 80%.

UFC Fight Night 230 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Oct. 14, and featherweights take center stage as Sodiq Yusuff battles Edson Barboza. The co-main attraction comes at 125 pounds, when former title challenger Jennifer Maia throws down with Viviane Araujo. Additional bouts featured on the main card include a bantamweight scrap pitting Jonathan Martinez against Adrian Yanez, and a 135-pound tilt between Christian Rodriguez and Cameron Saaiman.