Matt Veach steps in for injured George Sotiropolous to fight Matt Grice at UFC Fight Night 17

by MMAmania.com on Jan 29, 2009 12:50 AM EST

It's "Bedlam" all over again with UFC Fight Night 17.

The first-ever event for the promotion in Tampa, Fla., has been riddled with injuries and last-minute replacements in the past week. Main event attraction Hermes Franca and The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 7 winner Amir Sadollah were recently scratched.

Now you can add George Sotiropolous to the hit list.

The Australian -- who gained notoriety on season six of TUF -- suffered an injury while training, which has forced him off the Spike TV special. Sotiropolous has had a run-in with injuries recently, keeping him out of action since a dominating technical knockout win over fellow TUF contestant Roman Mitichyan at UFC Fight Night 13 last April.

Hopefully, he can bounce back sooner rather than later. For now, undefeated promotional newcomer Matt Veach will take his place against newly anointed Oklahoma police officer, Matt Grice.

Veach recently turned professional and hasn't looked back since, winning all 10 of his fights in little more than two years worth of work. And he's done it impressively with stoppages in 90 percent of those contests mostly by way of submission.

Grice was on a personal leave from the UFC to pursue a career in local law enforcement. He hasn’t been seen in the Octagon since his battle against Jason Black at last year’s UFC 77. The two put on a stellar three-round war that garnered "Fight of the Night" honors and some much deserved buzz about their respective futures.

His fighting future now includes a showdown with Veach, which will be relegated to the non-televised portion of the Spike TV card.

UFC Fight Night 17 will feature a main event between TUF 5 alum Joe Lauzon against budding lightweight talent, Jeremy Stephens, in the main event. Stephens recently replaced the injured Hermes Franca. The fight between Catone and Downey will more than likely not be guaranteed to air during the televised portion of the Spike TV broadcast.

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

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Damn. I was really looking forward to seeing George at 155.

The guy has great skills. Hopefully he isn’t out too long.

by dk on Jan 29, 2009 12:59 AM EST reply actions

Hmm…Not really a fight I’m looking forward too. Although any fight has the potential to be an awesome fight so…Why not.

by BrutalKnockout. on Jan 29, 2009 12:59 AM EST reply actions

damn. you scared me there for a sec. i saw an “injured george” flash before me. to bad for george.satirpolus?, i liked him on tuf and i’m anxious too see how he develops. i think he still with serra right?

by b.w. on Jan 29, 2009 1:02 AM EST reply actions

I was thinking the exact same thing when I first caught a glipmse of it.

by Liddell-Marquardt-GSP-Sherk on Jan 29, 2009 1:22 AM EST up reply actions

yeah, he is with SErra. George has a promising career ahead of him, that is if he ever stays healthy enough to actually fight.

I remember the 1st time I seen George was against Aoki!

by john on Jan 29, 2009 7:16 AM EST up reply actions

What the hell is Matt Serra going to teach him? How to get injured and fight once a year? Serra’s got a good start on that.

by Synyster [[2009 Year of Gegard Mousasi]] on Jan 29, 2009 7:39 AM EST up reply actions

Serra is a GREAT teacher with tons of Octagon experience being around the business for a long time and Longo is a damn good striking coach! i think its a good fit for George the Greek

Has George fought at 155 lbs yet? I know he weighed less then 170 lb’s when he fought Aoki, but has George been in the Octagon as a lightweight yet? Its been so long since his last fight that I cant remember!

by john on Jan 29, 2009 9:26 AM EST up reply actions

JOHN. i agree. serra may not go into the hof as a fighter, but he and ray longo are excellent trainers. i would take serra as a trainer over huges any day. serra would help make you more well rounded as to where hughes would stymie your striking game. i think geoge’s body is more well suited for 155, like danzig. thas a fight i would like to see, the one we didn’t get to see on their tuf final b/c of speer’s eyepoke imo. i think too much.

by b.w. on Jan 29, 2009 12:18 PM EST up reply actions