Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal and Mirko “CroCop” will collide in a featured attraction as part of the Rizin FF 3 grand prix, the promotion confirmed with MMAjunkie.
Lawal (20-5) is coming off a win over Satoshi Ishii inside the Bellator cage. He will be a replacement for Wanderlei Silva, who was injured and forced out of the event.
Also, former UFC and PRIDE fighter Heath Herring (28-14) will return to action for the first time in eight years, replacing Shane Carwin in the event. Herring takes on unbeaten Amir Aliakbari.
Herring’s last fight was a loss to Brock Lesnar at UFC 87 via decision. He has worked with Rizin as an announcer previously.
The remaining quarterfinal bouts in the grand prix include Kaido Hoovelson vs. Tsuyoshi Kosaka and Valentin Moldavsky vs. Szymon Bajor. Those bouts take place December 30, while the semifinals and finals are set for December 31 in Japan.
