[autotag]Pat Sabatini[/autotag] is going to need to keep these Tuckers straight.
Sabatini (15-3 MMA, 2-0 UFC) was set to take on [autotag]Gavin Tucker[/autotag] (13-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) next month at UFC Fight Night 198. But Tucker is out, and a fight for Sabatini against [autotag]Tucker Lutz[/autotag] (12-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) now is in the works, a person with knowledge of the new matchup told MMA Junkie. The person requested anonymity because the UFC has not yet made a formal announcement.
Lutz was scheduled to fight [autotag]Lando Vannata[/autotag] (12-5-2 MMA, 4-5-2 UFC) a week earlier at UFC Fight Night 197. His shift to the Sabatini fight leaves Vannata without an opponent. It is not yet known if Vannata will remain on the card against a new opponent or will fight at a later date.
UFC Fight Night 197 takes place Nov. 13 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. UFC Fight Night 198 takes place at the same venue a week later on Nov. 20. Both cards will stream on ESPN+.
Lutz dropped his pro debut in 2015, but is on a 12-fight winning streak since then. After a pair of wins on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2020, he made his promotional debut in May and took a unanimous decision against Kevin Aguilar at UFC 262.
Sabatini has won four straight fights. After he won the CFFC featherweight title in December 2020, he signed with the UFC. He won his promotional debut in April with a decision over Tristan Connelly. In August, he submitted Jamall Emmers in the first round.
With the change, the UFC Fight Night 198 lineup now includes:
- Miesha Tate vs. Ketlen Vieira
- Augusto Sakai vs. Tai Tuivasa
- Sean Brady vs. Michael Chiesa
- Joanne Calderwood vs. Taila Santos
- Cody Durden vs. Aori Qileng
- Cheyanne Buys vs. Loma Lookboonmee
- Terrance McKinney vs. Fares Ziam
- Rafa Garcia vs. Natan Levy
- Tucker Lutz vs. Pat Sabatini
- Azamat Murzakanov vs. Marcin Prachnio
- Denys Bondar vs. Malcolm Gordon
- Davey Grant vs. Adrian Yanez
- Shayilan Nuerdanbieke vs. Sean Soriano
The UFC Fight Night 197 lineup includes:
- Max Holloway vs. Yair Rodriguez
- Da Un Jung vs. Kennedy Nzechukwu
- Cynthia Calvillo vs. Andrea Lee
- Marcos Rogerio de Lima vs. Ben Rothwell
- Philipe Lins vs. Ovince Saint Preux
- Lando Vannata vs. TBA
- Leah Letson vs. Felicia Spencer
- Collin Anglin vs. Sean Woodson
- Julio Arce vs. Song Yadong
- Joel Alvarez vs. Thiago Moises
- Kyle Daukaus vs. Kevin Holland