UFC Newcomer Steps Up for Debut Fight at UFC 330 on Less Than 4 Days' Notice

This fighter signed on for his UFC opportunity on Wednesday of fight week.

(Zuffa LLC)

On the same day that UFC 330 lost one of its scheduled matchups, the UFC has officially unveiled a replacement a fighter to keep the event at 12 fights.

Scheduled to take place this Saturday at the Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia, PA, UFC 330 is headlined by a welterweight title bout between defending titleholder Islam Makhachev and Ian Machado Garry.

Mackenzie Dern also kicks offer her strawweight title reign in the night’s co-main event when she takes on Gillian Robertson, who enters the night riding the momentum of five-straight victories.

Charles Johnson Gets New Opponent for UFC 330

On Wednesday of fight week, UFC 330 took a major hit when news broke that Jose Ochoa had withdrawn from his flyweight matchup with Charles Johnson due to injury.

Clayton Carpenter (red gloves) fights Jose Ochoa (blue gloves) during UFC 328 at Prudential Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The news came as a significant blow to UFC 330 given that the bout was scheduled to take place on the main card, but the UFC acted quickly to bring in The Ultimate Fighter and Dana White’s Contender Series veteran Eduardo Chapolin to face Johnson.

The new matchup will now feature as part of the prelims for UFC 330, while the lightweight bout between Jalin Turner and Kauê Fernandes has been promoted to the main card.

Eduardo Chapolin Finally Gets UFC Opportunity on Short Notice

A former LFA flyweight champion, Chapolin brought a three-fight win streak into Season 33 of The Ultimate Fighter but was submitted by the season’s eventual flyweight winner Joseph Morales in his first fight on the show.

Returning to the LFA later that year, the Brazilian successfully defended his flyweight belt for the second time when he knocked out Devon Lozej in the opening round.

That performance earned Chapolin another shot at a UFC contract on last year’s edition of Dana White’s Contender Series, but a unanimous decision victory over An Tuan Ho unfortunately wasn’t enough to convince Dana White that the 30-year-old deserved a place on the UFC roster.

Charles Johnson Makes Quick Turnaround After UFC Baku Loss

Chapolin’s long-awaited UFC opportunity comes on very short notice and against an established name, as Johnson has been competing in the UFC flyweight division since 2022.

Also a former LFA flyweight titleholder, Johnson had an underwhelming 2-4 start to his UFC career before a unanimous decision win over the formerly-undefeated Azat Maksum in 2024 kicked off what eventually became a four-fight win streak.

Charles Johnson (blue gloves) knocks out Joshua Van (red gloves) during UFC Fight Night at Ball Arena. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

All four of those victories came in 2024, and since then “InnerG” has alternated wins and losses against some of the UFC’s top flyweights and was submitted by Asu Almabayev in his most recent outing at UFC Baku less than two months ago.

Charles Johnson (red gloves) fights Jake Hadley (blue gloves) during UFC Fight Night at Enterprise Center. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

Provided there are no issues on weigh-in day, UFC 330 is now set to go ahead on Saturday with 12 scheduled fights.

UFC 330 Fight Card

Main Event: Islam Makhachev vs. Ian Machado Garry – For the UFC Welterweight Championship

Co-Main Event: Mackenzie Dern vs. Gillian Robertson – For the UFC Strawweight Championship

Jalin Turner vs. Kauê Fernandes

Mansur Abdul-Malik vs. Dustin Stoltzfus

Edson Barboza vs. Esteban Ribovics

Chidi Njokuani vs. Joel Alvarez

Charles Johnson vs. Eduardo Chapolin

Donte Johnson vs. Eric McConico

Vicente Luque vs. Tresean Gore

Rafael Tobias vs. Lucas Fernando

Neil Magny vs. Ramiz Brahimaj

Jeremiah Wells vs. Myktybek Orolbai