Yoshihiro Akiyama withdraws from UFC 128 fight, Dan Miller agrees to face Marquardt
by Tim Groves on March 12, 2011

Yoshihiro Akiyama (13-3 2 NC) has withdrawn from his bout with Nate Marquardt (30-10-2) at UFC 128 and Dan Miller (14-4) has stepped in as his replacement, according to UFC.com.

Akiyama, a native of Japan, felt that it was best to stay at home and help care for those affected by the recent natural disasters that have hit the small island. Akiyama and his family are safe but his return to the UFC is currently unknown. 

Dan Miller has agreed to replace Akiyama in his bout against Marquardt. Miller was originally slated to fight Nick Catone on the evening's un-aired preliminary card. Miller's switch has left Catone without an opponent. The UFC has not announced if they will seek a replacement or simply move Catone off of the card.

UPDATE: MMAJunkie.com has found out that Constantinos Philippou has agreed to step in on short notice against Catone. Philippou was a cast member on the 11th season of The Ultimate Fighter where he lost to Joe Henle during the elimination round.

Make sure to check back with us the day of the event for free, live, round-by-round coverage of UFC 128 right here at FiveKnuckles.com! Join expert analyst Mike Williams as he takes you through the entire fight card blow-by-blow and then keep it right here for all the post-fight news and notes you can handle!

 |  (6) Comments Giada Esposito: That's really too bad about Akiyama missing the Marquardt fight, but it's a very classy move by him to stay home and help out with the disaster victims in Japan. Hopefully things will go well there and we'll see him back safely in the Octagon in the near future. Wandering_Minstrel: Good on him for helping out his country. I also think it was a smart move because I believe Marquardt would handle him easily. Akiyama needs to drop to Welterweight... or he needs to get with a camp that will push him harder. Marker28: That's understandable, I wish him well. flyangler: Good break for Miller. Gets a top level fight with a chance to put on a good fight. I think he'll lose but it will be a good experience.
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