Dan Miller to replace Alessio Sakara at UFC Fight Night 17 against Jake Rosholt

Octagon veteran Alessio Sakara (13-7) was forced to withdraw from his bout against up-and-coming middleweight prospect Jake Rosholt (5-0) at UFC Fight Night 17 from the University of Southern Florida (USF) Sun Dome in Tampa, Fla., on February 7, 2009 due to a shoulder injury.

Replacing "Legionarius" will be IFL veteran Dan Miller, who confirmed the bout with Larry Pepe, host of MMAmania.com's exclusive presentation of Pro MMA Radio.

Miller was among several talented IFL fighters who Zuffa picked up when the promotion folded. He was the last man to hold the IFL title; however, he was never able to defend the belt after defeating Ryan McGivern via submission (kneebar) to win it in May of this year.

A Brazilian jiu-jitsu brown belt (and brother of UFC lightweight Jim Miller), Miller defeated Rob Kimmons via first round submission in his promotional debut at UFC Fight Night 15 last September.

He didn't have much time to celebrate his debut win as Zuffa asked him to step in to replace an injured Ricardo Almeida against Matt Horwich at UFC 90 a little more than four weeks later. Miller happily obliged and proceeded to defeat Horwich via unanimous decision in an action-packed fight.

Now Miller will come to the rescue once again, this time to battle the undefeated Rosholt.

Rosholt is a three-time NCAA Division I wrestling champion out of Oklahoma State University (OSU). He turned pro more than one year ago and his gone undefeated ever since.

His limited experience was evident in his recent World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) debut against Nissen Osterneck. Rosholt won the bout via technical knockout, but not before eating several knuckle sandwiches and looking as if he could be stopped.

A win over Miller would certainly make a statement, but he'll need to set the pace early and keep a sound submission defense if he hopes to score the "W".

UFC Fight Night 17 features the 155-pound match up between Joe Lauzon and Hermes Franca. Fellow lightweights Mac Danzig and Josh Neer, as well as Kurt Pellegrino and Rob Emerson, are also set to hook ‘em up.

In addition, Cain Velasquez will be in action on the Spike TV special against Denis Stojnic in a heavyweight bout.

To check out the latest UFC Fight Night 17 fight card and rumors click here.