According to a published report, former UFC heavyweight champion will officially make his debut for the revamped ProElite organization against MMA and boxing veteran Tony Lopez. This will happen on the same card as the MMA debut of Reagan Penn (former UFC lightweight champion B.J. Penn's younger brother) as well as the rematch of Joe Riggs and Kendall Grove.
Arlovski has fallen on hard times of late. He was most recently defeated in the first round of the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix by Sergei Kharitonov, but is on a four-fight losing skid. In addition to the loss to Kharitonov, Arlovski has also lost to Antonio Silva, Brett Rogers and Fedor Emelianenko. His last win came in October of 2008 against former IFL heavyweight contender Ben Rothwell.
Lopez is too inexperienced to be considered a journeyman (he's 5-2 in professional MMA), but has fought on small shows throughout his short career. He most recently defeated Rob Marrow at King of the Cage 69 by TKO in the first round.
AOL's Mike Chiappetta adds this detail about Lopez:
Instead, he'll attempt to walk the comeback trail against Lopez, a 5-2 fighter who is coming off a 75-second TKO win at a recent King of the Cage event. Lopez has won four of his last five overall. The 24-year-old also has experience in pro boxing, with a 3-4 record in seven fights.
Stay tuned to this StoryStream for updates to this event's fight card.