WEC featherweight prospect Mackens Semerzier has been forced out of his April 24 slugfest against Anthony Morrison at the upcoming "Aldo vs. Faber" pay-per-view from the Arco Arena in Sacramento, CA, due to a shoulder injury suffered in training.
MMAWeekly reports that California native Chad Mendes will step in to replace him.
Morrison (15-8) came up snake eyes at January's WEC 46 event when he was faced with the unenviable task of trying to stymie the onslaught of Mike Thomas Brown in the former featherweight champion's first match since coughing up the 145-pound crown to Jose Aldo last November.
A pretty tall order for anyone in the stacked featherweight division, let alone a promotion newcomer. Fortunately the WEC is giving "Cheesesteak" a second chance to prove he belongs against fellow prospect Chad Mendes.
The Team Alpha Male product has remained perfect through six fights. He made his WEC debut a successful one at the "Bowles vs. Cruz" event just last month with a dominant decision victory over Erik Koch.
Mendes cut his teeth in the Tachi Palace promotion and is considered one of the sport's top prospects -- though he'll need to get past Morrison if he plans on retaining that billing.
WEC 48: "Aldo vs. Faber" features a featherweight championship bout between the local fan favorite "The California Kid" Urijah Faber and unstoppable 145-pound champion Jose Aldo.
Also announced for the main card is a lightweight championship brouhaha between champion Ben "Smooth" Henderson and challenger Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone. Former featherweight champion Mike Brown will also take part in the event when he enters the cage opposite Manny Gamburyan.
For more on the upcoming WEC 48 pay-per-view event click here.
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