Koscheck to step in against Alves at UFC 90

The Ultimate Fighting Championship on Monday confirmed a report by MMAWeekly.com that Diego Sanchez is out of his scheduled UFC 90 bout with Thiago Alves due to torn rib cartilage. Stepping in to take his place is American Kickboxing Academy's Josh Koscheck.

"There is nothing worse than having a great fight and then having one of the fighters drop out at the last second," said UFC President Dana White. "But the one thing the UFC has proven time and time again is our ability to replace fights with ones as good as or better than the original fight."

Koscheck had already been training for a fight on the UFC Fight For The Troops event in December, and says he actually hadn't stopped training after his last fight, against Chris Lytle at UFC 86. "I think he's a tough opponent. He's on a tear right now in the UFC and for me to step up and fight him, I think it's gonna be an exciting fight. I've been in training since Chris Lytle, I haven't taken any time off."

Though he had prepared for Sanchez, Alvez doesn't appear to be all that bothered by the change in opponents, relishing the chance to fight Koscheck instead.

"Josh Koscheck is a great fighter and I think he's an even better matchup for me," said Alves. "I'm looking forward to fighting him, and I'm gonna knock him out."