UFC Newcomer Booked for Debut Fight After Lengthy Suspension Threatened UFC Career

Provided nothing goes awry leading up to his most recent booking, UFC newcomer José Henrique Souza will finally make his promotional debut on April 4.

Headlined by a fan-friendly lightweight bout between Renato Moicano and Chris Duncan, the UFC Fight Night card scheduled for April 4 will see the world’s leading MMA promotion return to the Meta APEX in Las Vegas in between visits to Seattle and Miami.

With exactly a month to go until the event, Ag Fight reports that Souza will make his promotional debut against Charles Radtke at UFC Vegas 116 after missing out on the chance to finally step into the Octagon last month.

José Henrique Souza Set To Debut At UFC Vegas 116

Boasting an 8-1 professional MMA record, Souza initially missed out on his chance to join the UFC when he was knocked out in the third round of a Dana White’s Contender Series fight with Yusaku Kinoshita in 2022.

The result marked Souza’s first loss after he previously started his career 5-0, but a third-round finish against Alan Silva in his return to Shooto Brasil in 2023 was enough to earn a formal invitation to join the UFC. Unfortunately, the Brazilian failed an out-of-competition drug test in March of that year and was subsequently hit with a two-year suspension from the UFC’s former drug testing partner USADA.

“Canela” returned to the Brazilian regional scene and picked up two wins under the Centurion FC banner in 2024. The 23-year-old was booked to finally make his UFC debut last month following the conclusion of his USADA suspension, but Souza saw his original opponent Eric Nolan pull out of the event before he was also forced to withdrew from a replacement fight with Nikolay Veretennikov.

Charles Radtke Looks For Back-To-Back Wins On April 4

The Brazilian is now slated to make his promotional debut against former CFFC Welterweight Champion Radtke, who joined the UFC in 2023 and has already made six appearances inside the Octagon.

“Chuck Buffalo” took a unanimous decision over Mike Mathetha in his debut at UFC 293 before turning some heads with a first-round knockout of Gilbert Urbina in his sophomore outing five months later. The 35-year-old has alternated wins and losses since then, and he hasn’t gone the three-round distance since his UFC debut against Mathetha.

Charles Radtke (blue gloves) prepares to fight Mike Malott (not pictured) during UFC 315 at Bell Centre. | Eric Bolte-Imagn Images

The addition of Souza vs. Radtke gives UFC Vegas 116 a total of 12 scheduled bouts, and “Canela” is notably the eleventh Brazilian fighter that’s been booked to compete as part of the card on April 4.

UFC Vegas 116 Fight Card

• Main Event: Renato Moicano vs. Chris Duncan

• Virna Jandiroba vs. Tabatha Ricci

• Edmen Shahbazyan vs. Jun Yong Park

• Haily Cowan vs. Alice Pereira

• Alessandro Costa vs. Stewart Nicoll

• Dione Barbosa vs. Melissa Gatto

• Azamat Bekoev vs. Tresean Gore

• Tommy McMillen vs. Manolo Zecchini

• Thomas Petersen vs. Guilhereme Pat

• Robert Ruchala vs. Jose Delano

• Rafael Estevam vs. Ethyn Ewing

• Charles Radtke vs. Jose Henrique Souza