Bojan Mihajlovic has been forced out of a planned heavyweight encounter with Francis Ngannou this April at UFC Fight Night 86, opening the door for Curtis Blaydes to make his debut.
The bout goes down April 10 from inside the Zagreb Arena in Croatia. The main card and part of the prelims are set for FOX Sports 1, including a headline bout between former UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos and top contender Ben Rothwell.
Blaydes (5-0) has recorded five TKO victories in his pro career, including a third round victory over Luis Cortes at Resurrection Fighting Alliance 35 this past February. He is a native of Oklahom and turned pro in 2014 with a win over veteran Lorenzo Hood.
Ngannou (6-1) picked up a win via knockout over Luis Henrique in December in his debut with the UFC. The French fighter is currently on a five-fight win streak, with all five victories coming via either TKO or submission.
The rest of the card includes Jan Blachowicz vs. Igor Pokrajac, Nicholas Dalby vs. Zak Cummings and Lucas Martins vs. Robert Whiteford.
