Renzo Gracie gets new opponent for ADCC match

Renzo Gracie will still compete at September’s ADCC event in Finland.

Originally scheduled to meet Matt Hughes in a grappling contest, Gracie will now take on Sanae Kikuta, the promotion announced Thursday. ADCC 2017 takes place at The Espoo Metro Areena on Sept. 22-24.

Hughes suffered a horrific accident on June 16, when his truck was hit by a train, and is still hospitalized.

Gracie and Kikuta met once under mixed martial arts rules in the past with the Brazilian winning with a guillotine choke 43 seconds into the sixth round at PRIDE 2 in 1998.

Kikuta is one of the few non-Brazilians to ever win an ADCC gold medal, in 2001. The 45-year-old veteran built a 31-9-3-1 record in almost two decades as a MMA fighter, winning the Pancrase light heavyweight championship.

ADCC 2017 will also feature a grappling match between former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir and Bellator fighter Chael Sonnen.