Veteran Jim Miller has landed an opponent for his UFC Vegas 69 fight.
With Gabriel Benitez out of the February 18 match-up with Miller, the card had a rather gaping hole to fill. A rather blatant one, after the show’s original main event between Marlon Vera and Cory Sandhagen shifted to UFC San Antonio in March.
However, in place of Benitez will be Alexander Hernandez. UFC officials confirmed the booking in a press release on Thursday, following an initial report by Alex Behunin.
The UFC Vegas 69 card has come under fire for its lack of star power. In the wake of Vera vs. Sandhagen moving to the San Antonio card on March 25, women’s flyweights Erin Blanchfield and Taila Santos were bumped up to the main event slot. Miller remains one of the most recognizable names on the docket, so keeping him in action was key.
Not that you can keep Jim Miller (35-16, 1NC) away from a fight. The UFC’s leader in fights, with 40 trips out to the octagon, is essentially its leader in showing up to them. While Miller has had a handful of fights fall through in the past, only once has he been the one to withdraw. That was after contracting COVID ahead of a fight with Nikolas Motta in 2021.
Miller currently sits on a three-fight win streak. Hernandez (13-6) has lost two straight, most recently against Billy Quarantillo in a featherweight match-up. He’ll be returning to lightweight to face Jim Miller.
The UFC Vegas 69 card currently consists of the following fights:
- Taila Santos vs. Erin Blanchfield
- Jordan Wright vs. Zac Pauga
- Lina Länsberg vs. Mayra Bueno Silva
- Ovince Saint Preux vs. Philipe Lins
- Nazim Sadykhov vs. Evan Elder
- A.J. Fletcher vs. Themba Gorimbo
- Juancamilo Ronderos vs. Clayton Carpenter
- William Knight vs. Marcin Prachnio
- Josh Parisian vs. Jamal Pogues
- Jamall Emmers vs. Khusein Askhabov
- Jim Miller vs. Alexander Hernandez
