Diego Ferreira draws short-notice replacement Kyle Nelson for UFC 231

Diego Ferreira will be competing this Saturday after all.

The Brazilian lightweight had already lost one scheduled opponent for UFC 231 when John Makdessi withdrew from their bout and was replaced by Jesse Ronson last week. Then on Tuesday, Ronson announced on social media that he was pulled from the Ferreira fight due to being deemed unfit to safely make the cut down to 156 pounds.

However, officials have apparently been searching for a second replacement since Ronson’s withdrawal and they announced Wednesday that they have signed Ontario native Kyle Nelson to fight Ferreira on just three days’ notice. TSN was first to report the news.

Nelson, who hails from Huntsville, a town just a two-and-a-half hour drive out of Toronto, where Saturday’s event is being held, is 12-1 competing at both 155 and 145 pounds. He has won his last six fights, with five of those wins coming by way of knockout or submission.

Ferreira (13-2) is on a two-fight win streak. He is 4-2 in the UFC, with back-to-back wins over Jared Gordon and Olivier Aubin-Mericer in his most recent outings.

The Ferreira-Nelson lightweight bout is scheduled for the Fight Pass preliminary portion of UFC 231, which takes place Saturday at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.