Bronzoulis Hurt, Hieron Gets 'Junior Killer;' Heavyweights Linderman, Mitchell Set for LFC 12

---

A knee injury has forced former Legacy Fighting Championship welterweight titlist Mike Bronzoulis to withdraw from his planned clash with ex-IFL champion Jay Hieron at LFC 12. Stepping up to replace “The Greek” on just one week's notice will be Jungle Fight veteran Romario Manoel da Silva.

Sherdog.com confirmed the change with Legacy matchmaker Mick Maynard on Friday evening, who also revealed that former Bellator Fighting Championships talent D.J. Linderman [pictured: right] will meet Dale Mitchell. LFC 12 takes place July 13 at Houston's Arena Theater and is headlined by a flyweight title tilt pitting ex- UFC talent Will Campuzano against 12-year pro Chad Robichaux. AXS TV, formerly known as HDNet, will broadcast the evening's main draw.

Hieron, 35, recently parted ways with Bellator after coming up short in his bid to capture the Chicago-based promotion's welterweight title. “The Thoroughbred” won Bellator's Season 4 tournament last year, taking a split decision from future lightweight tournament winner Rick Hawn to earn a crack at reigning champion Ben Askren. Hieron came up on the short end of the judges' verdict in his five-round clash with “Funky,” however, dropping a split nod to Askren last October at Bellator 56.

Da Silva last competed in September, taking a unanimous decision over EliteXC veteran Jaime Jara at Shark Fights 19. A veteran of 29 pro outings, “Junior Killer” has stopped nearly half of his 19 career victims by knockout and owns six first-round finishes to his credit.

Linderman captured the Cage Warriors Fighting Championship heavyweight title in his most recent bout, outpointing fellow Bellator veteran Mike Hayes on June 2. The victory marked the second straight win for “Da Protege,” who took a unanimous nod from Bobby Brents in April to earn his first win of 2012.

Mitchell, 29, has won four consecutive fights after beginning his career an inauspicious 1-4. The Texan has already notched three wins so far this year, knocking out James Hall and Drew Raticheck in January before doing the same to Tony Melton on June 16.