Charles Johnson in for Jeff Molina at UFC Vegas 67, faces Jimmy Flick

James Krause student Jeff Molina has withdrawn from UFC Vegas 67, and Charles Johnson has replaced him to fight the returning Jimmy Flick.

Multiple people with knowledge of the promotion’s plans confirmed to MMA Fighting the shift, which comes days after Krause and his students were barred from participating in the UFC pending the results of multiple government investigations into suspicious betting. Verbal agreements are in place for the bout with contracts expected shortly.

UFC Vegas 67 takes place Jan. 14 at UFC APEX in Las Vegas. The official bout order for the card has not been announced.

Johnson makes his third octagon appearance after notching his first UFC win with a split call over Zhalgas Zhumagulov at UFC Vegas 65. The win followed a debut loss against Muhammad Mokaev for the former LFA champ.

In Johnson’s way is Flick, who makes his first UFC appearance after retiring from the sport. Flick unexpectedly hung up his gloves in 2021 after a debut octagon win over Cody Durden. The submission specialist expressed concerns about his future and aimed to focus on his other career as a machinist. In an interview with MMA Fighting, Flick explained his change of heart as the result of a change in his relationship status and desire to leave a mark on the sport.

UFC Vegas 67 is expected to be headlined by a middleweight fight between Kelvin Gastelum and Nassourdine Imavov.