Wallhead in for Injured Champ Watson Against Trigg at BAMMA 7

British Association of Mixed Martial Arts middleweight champion Tom Watson has suffered a back injury and has been forced to withdraw from his Sept. 10 title defense against Frank Trigg, BAMMA officials announced Wednesday.

Stepping in to fill the void in the BAMMA 7 headliner will be Bellator Fighting Championships welterweight veteran Jim Wallhead, who will meet Trigg in a non-title affair.

The event will emanate from the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham, England, and will also feature a lightweight title fight between Rob Sinclair and Leonardo Santos. Additionally, UFC veteran Efrain Escudero will appear on the card, as the winner of “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 8 squares off with Tim Radcliffe.

A seven-year pro, Wallhead (Pictured) recently had an eight-fight winning streak snapped by Rick Hawn in the quarterfinals of Bellator’s latest 170-pound tournament. “Judo Jim” won his debut with the promotion in October, outpointing Ryan Thomas at Bellator 32.

“I’m really grateful BAMMA has given me this chance to fight on such a big card against a high-level athlete like Frank Trigg,” Wallhead stated in an official release. “It’s a test that I’m looking forward to, but I hope he doesn’t think I’m just a late replacement who is there for a quick payday. I’m there to get back to where I belong: at the top, above people like him.”

Trigg had his most recent run with the UFC cut short last year when he was released by the promotion following losses to Josh Koscheck and Matt Serra. “Twinkle Toes” rebounded from those defeats with victories in his last two contests, knocking out Roy Neeman in November and John Phillips in May.