UFC 73: Joslin out, Fickett in against Lytle

by MMAmania.com on May 18, 2007 9:25 AM EDT in UFC News

Once again, welterweight Jeff Joslin has been forced to withdraw from a bout because of an undisclosed injury, according to FightNetwork.com.

The Canadian — who is a black belt in jiu-jitsu and karate — was scheduled to face Chris Lytle at UFC 73: "Stacked" at the Arco Arena in Sacramento, California, on July 7. Joslin also had to pull out of his fight with Kuniyoshi Hironaka at UFC Fight Night 9 last month with a similar issue.

Although the two injuries are unrelated, it's a recurring them that has Joslin none to pleased.

Here's a snip:

"I've been going through a few days of being pissed off. I was looking forward to the fight; he's [Lytle] a well-known name and it was a good opportunity."

Indeed, a win or solid performance against The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 4 170-pound finalist would have been a tremendous lift for Joslin, who is still trying to redeem himself after a unanimous decision loss to Josh Koscheck in his UFC debut late last year.

Now, Octagon veteran Drew Fickett — fresh of a win over Keita Nakamura at UFN 9 and a late-night weekend bender earlier this month in New Jersey — will fill-in for Joslin and go up against "Lights Out."

Fickett is a very game opponent and should match up well with Lytle. While I was looking forward to seeing Joslin go toe-to-toe with Lytle, I can't say that I'm disappointed with his replacement.

It should be a very solid fight.

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Comments

Should be a good fight. I really wanna see Lytle as a mainstay in the UFC. Guy has heart, heavy hands, just needs that overall refinement alot of fighters lack.

by Luppers on May 18, 2007 9:31 AM EDT reply actions

thats a good fight right there

by MMA Dude on May 18, 2007 10:06 AM EDT reply actions

damn, I wanted to see jeff fight again. He looked good against koscheck. He’s a popular guy around here in central ontario, several people at my MMA gym have trained with him.

by Rob on May 18, 2007 10:27 AM EDT reply actions

Just goes to show you dont need championship quality opponents to have a great fight. Fickett v Lytle is really intriguing. And I’m sure we wont see it on PPV….

by MoreThanUFC on May 18, 2007 10:50 AM EDT reply actions

Man, if they could move it up to UFC 72, this could be the main event.

by Mamas Boy on May 18, 2007 12:09 PM EDT reply actions

This should still be a good fight. I hope Chris pulls it off

by Stafo on May 18, 2007 12:14 PM EDT reply actions

I was really looking forward to seeing my hometown fighter Jeff Joslin fighting at UFC 73. My dad knows his brother Joe and this is his biggest dream come true. Maybe this is a good thing for him since his fight wasn’t likely to be shown on t.v. anyways. Another Ultimate fightnight televised fight will be great exposure for him esspecially if he wins. Keep your head up Jeff!!!

by Money$Mic on May 18, 2007 1:36 PM EDT reply actions

Man, if they could move it up to UFC 72, this could be the main event.

LOL, i hope there really is some secret fight on72

by RoB on May 18, 2007 1:43 PM EDT reply actions

Man, if they could move it up to UFC 72, this could be the main event.

LOL…that is funny stuff! at least co-event.

Lytle better stay on his feet if he wants to beat Fickett.

by SaVaGe on May 18, 2007 4:54 PM EDT reply actions

good replacement, maybe even a better fight now than before, still think lytle will find a way to win…

by tha spida on May 18, 2007 6:07 PM EDT reply actions

nice…could really go either way! Lights out is the man!

by geesus on May 18, 2007 6:47 PM EDT reply actions

Lytle will find a way to win this one.

by Stafo on May 18, 2007 7:14 PM EDT reply actions

Hmmm, I can’t see Ficket doing anything to Lytle on the ground, Hughes couldn’t even, Lytle is pretty strong and good defensivly. It should be exciting on the feet though. Looking forward to it.

by The Anomaly on May 18, 2007 8:01 PM EDT reply actions