Batista’s MMA Opponent Arrested – New Opponent Is?

The fight has been in the works for months … the ex-WWE champ was slated to get in the ring with Rashid Evans (not the one from the UFC) at a CES MMA event in Providence, Rhode Island.

But a rep for the event tells us … Evans was scratched from the fight card when he was arrested for violating his probation some time last week … and once again, it seemed like fate was going to prevent Bautista’s MMA career from ever getting started.

Event organizers scrambled to find a replacement fighter — a guy named Vince Lucero stepped up … which could be a HUUUUGE problem for Bautista because Lucero has been in more than 40 pro fights.

In fact, Lucero has gone toe-to-toe with a bunch of legitimate MMA studs … including former UFC Heavyweight champ Tim Sylvia (Sylvia won that fight).