UFC 330 fighter withdraws just days out from event as late replacement found

Jose Ochoa is out of his UFC 330 main card fight against Charles Johnson on Saturday.

The Peruvian flyweight was booked to make his fifth UFC appearance on the card headlined by Islam Makhachev’s welterweight title fight against Ian Machado Garry, but has been forced to withdraw.

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It marks the latest blow to an already weakened card after Geoff Neal pulled out of the Philadelphia show last month.

Ochoa may have suffered a late injury, but the 25-year-old has not yet revealed the reason for withdrawing from UFC 330.

Charles Johnson gets new UFC 330 opponent

Nonetheless, the UFC brass has already found a replacement for longtime flyweight contender Johnson, who was submitted by Asu Almabayev last time out at UFC Baku in June.

Announcing the fight on Instagram, Johnson revealed he is now booked to fight Brazil’s Eduardo Henrique, who will be making his UFC debut.

Henrique boasts a 15-2 professional MMA record and is a former LFA flyweight champion.

He claimed a unanimous decision win in his last fight on Dana White‘s Contender Series (DWCS), which offers a direct route for up-and-coming fighters to secure a UFC contract.

Despite his victory and stepping up on 10 days’ notice, UFC CEO White passed on offering ‘Chapolin’ a deal with his promotion.

However, Henrique has now been gifted a golden opportunity against Johnson, who is the only UFC fighter to have a win over current flyweight champion Joshua Van.

The pair are scheduled to meet at a catchweight of 130lbs due to the late changes.

Johnson made his UFC debut in July 2022 and embarked on an impressive four-fight winning streak in 2024, defeating the likes of Van and Sumudaerji.

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Although Johnson has won just two of his last five bouts, the 35-year-old Missouri native has proved time and again he can be called upon, with his UFC 330 outing being his fourth appearance in 2026.

The promotion has not confirmed whether Johnson will remain on the main card or be replaced with another fight.

Who else is fighting at UFC 330?

UFC 330 goes down at Xfinity Mobile Arena this weekend and features two title fights.

Machado Garry can become the first Irish UFC champion since Conor McGregor if he overcomes Makhachev, who is out to set the record for the most consecutive fights undefeated in the promotion.

In the co-main event, Mackenzie Dern defends her women’s strawweight title against Gillian Robertson.

Other notable names on the card include Edson Barboza, who faces Esteban Ribovics at lightweight.

UFC Meta Rankings

The UFC ranking system is ever-evolving and is now more different than ever.

Right up until the summer of 2026, the UFC used its official rankings based on media votes.

However, as of June 22, 2026, the UFC began transitioning away from the traditional media panel to new AI-based rankings in partnership with Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta.

The new rankings will be automatically calculated and updated every Monday following official events.

And talkSPORT.com have made it easy for MMA fans to stay up to date with the new system through a full and regularly updated UFC Meta Rankings list, including stars from the heavyweight and lightweight divisions.

And another exciting clash at 155lbs sees Jalin Turner contest his second bout since reversing his decision to retire against Kaue Fernandes.