LAS VEGAS (Jen 15, 2016) -World Seri de Goumen (WSOF.com) announced today that Thiago Meller has withdrawn from his scheduled welterweight (170 liv) konpetisyon kont John “Doomsday” Howard (23-12), ki ap fè fas a kounye a“Mad” Mike Arrant (15-10) in a middleweight (185 liv) bout at the much-anticipated WSOF31: Ivanov vs. Copeland world championship doubleheader Mixed Martial Arts (Mma) evènman, ap viv sou NBCSN (9 p.m. AK/6 p.m. PT) soti nan Foxwoods Resort Casino nan Mashantucket, Conn. sou Vandredi, Jen 17.

Anplis de sa, undefeated Marcus Surin (3-0) of Stamford, Conn. has been tabbed to step in for Sam Watford nan pwograme a ki lejè (155 liv) preliminary card contest against Christian “The Terminator” Torres (0-0) of Endicott, N.Y..

Originally hailing from Orlando, Fla., -5 nan pye-9, 28-year-old Arrant, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu brown belt, resides in Las Vegas, where he is a member of legendary champion Randy “The Natural” Couture’s Xtreme Couture fight squad.

Arrant is looking to return to the win column following a unanimous decision defeat in his last start on August 7, 2015, at the hands of two-time UFC veteran Brock Jardine.

Prior to the loss, Arrant had reeled off six consecutive victories, five of which he produced in the first round, by way of (T)KO oswa soumèt. Pou dat, 12 nan l ' 15 professional wins have been finishes.

During the six-fight win streak, Arrant seized his first championship – regional promotion SteelFist Fight Night’s welterweight title – with a first round (5:00) KI MOUN KI (retirement) nan Carl Dieckmann sou Jiye 12, 2013.

Like Arrant, the 5-foot-7, 33-year-old Howard boasts a phenomenal finish rate with 15 nan l ' 23 professional victories having come by way of (T)KO oswa soumèt.

Howard will make his promotional debut with World Series of Fighting following a second stint with the UFC that spanned seven fights and included wins over Ouri Hall, Siyar Bahadurzada ak Cathal Pendred.

Soti nan pwi $39.99, tickets for WSOF31: Ivanov vs. Copeland are on sale at WSOF.com and Foxwoods.com.

Doors at The Grand Theatre at Foxwoods Resort Casino will open at 5 p.m. AK, and the first of seven preliminary card bouts will begin at 5:45 p.m.

Tout preliminè Kat la batay ap kouran ap viv sou yon jwè videyo Anbarkabl sou WSOF.com.

In the main event of the five-bout, viv difuze NBCSN, reigning World Series of Fighting heavyweight champion Blagoy Ivanov (13-1) will put his title on the line against Josh “Cuddly Bear” Copeland (12-3).

Nan ko-prensipal la ki lejè evènman, supèrstar Jason "Kansas City Bandit nan" segondè (19-5) ak Mike "marsyèn a" Ricci (11-4) will square off with their division’s number one contender ranking at stake.

WSOF31: IVANOV VS. COPELAND

KAT MAIN (Live sou NBCSN)

World Series of Fighting Heavyweight Championship Main Event:
Blagoy Ivanov (Chanpyon) vs. Josh Copeland (Pwovokatè)

Ki lejè Ko-Main Evènman:
Jason segondè vs. Mike Ricci

Middleweight: John Howard vs. Mike Arrant
Plum: Luis Palomino vs. Sheymon Moraes
Middleweight: Phil Hawes vs. Josh kle

KAT PRELIMINÈ (Ap viv sou WSOF.com)

Lejè: Tom Marcellino vs. Devin Powell
Lour: Juliano Coutinho vs. Justin Willis
Lour: Tyler King vs. Lorenzo Hood
Wèltèr: Robert Fonseca vs. Sean Lally
Lejè: Bruce Boyington vs. Sayil Almeida
Bantamweight: Rodrigo Almeida vs. Ben Pierre-Saint
Lejè: Marcus Surin vs. Christian Torres