UFC heavyweight star Valter Walker didn’t have to wait long for his next Octagon assignment after his fight was scratched from UFC Rio last weekend.

Valter Walker was hours away from fighting Mohammed Usman on the UFC Rio undercard last Saturday, before Usman withdrew on hours’ notice due to an injury. Walker was furious with Usman’s withdrawal, as he scolded his opponent as he appeared at the official weigh-ins.

Walker is riding a lot of momentum after three consecutive first-round heel hook submission victories, including most recently against Kennedy Nzechukwu in July. Valter is the brother of fellow UFC star Johnny Walker, who is fresh off a win over Zhang Mingyang at UFC Shanghai.

Many wondered how fast the UFC matchmakers would move to get Walker another fight after the UFC Rio debacle, and whether or not Usman would be his rescheduled opponent. We got an answer this week as Walker is set to return on one of the biggest cards of the year.

Valter Walker rebooked for UFC 321 in days’ notice bout after disappointing fight cancellation

Walker will face UFC debutant Louie Sutherland on the UFC 321 undercard later this month in Abu Dhabi. He confirmed the news of his return to the cage following an initial report from MMA journalist Laerte Viana.

Sutherland was supposed to face Justin Tafa last month before withdrawing due to an illness. He’s won four consecutive fights ahead of his UFC debut, tallying successful stints in LFA and FSC.

Walker has earned recent wins over Junior Tafa, Don’Tale Mayes, and Nzechukwu since dropping his UFC debut against Lukasz Brzeski in April 2024.

UFC 321 is headlined by a UFC heavyweight title fight between Tom Aspinall and Ciryl Gane. The co-main event is a vacant UFC strawweight title bout between Mackenzie Dern and Virna Jandiroba.