After Jon Jones recent positive USADA drug test and subsequent removal from the UFC 200 card, an unlikely opponent has thrown his name into the hat as a late replacement. That name? Ilir “The Sledgehammer” Latifi. Latifi took to Twitter on Thursday morning, stating he was ready and willing to save the Light Heavyweight championship bout on the UFC 200 card in a brief message to Dana White.

 

 

Latifi (12-4) is currently on a 4 fight win streak, with his latest victory over fellow Light Heavyweight contender Gian Villante. The 32-year-old Swede is currently ranked #13 in the UFC Light Heavyweight division, but history has  shown rankings sometimes matter less than eagerness to the UFC brass, specifically when one is offering to step in at the last minute, and preserve an eagerly anticipated outing – as Daniel Cormier’s most certainly is.

 

With the time and energy the UFC has put into marketing a Cormier-Jones showdown, it may be that they are equally willing to sign a replacement, and the Sledgehammer looks to smash his way into the spot, and has stated that he is ready to fight, close to weight, and currently in Miami – only a short flight from Las Vegas. Latifi has recently stated that he was staying ready for Hamburg, so one might assume he doesn’t currently have a matchup waiting in the wings.

 

 

In a statement Thursday morning to MMAViking, Latifi merely stated that he was ready to step up, with a smile. The MMA community waits with bated breath to see if the UFC 200 card may yet see its Light Heavyweight championship bout after all.

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