With middleweight champion Anthony Hernandez sidelined dealing with injuries and the birth of a child, LFA will crown an interim 185-pound champion in May.

The promotion today announced Ian Heinisch (9-1) will take on Gabriel Checco (10-2) for the interim middleweight belt at LFA 39. Hernandez (6-0) is expected to fight the winner in a title unification fight later this year.

LFA 39 will take place May 4 at Dobson Arena in Vail, Colo. The main card will air on AXS TV. In addition to the headliner, Hayward Charles (15-10) will take on Jordan Wright (9-0) in a middleweight bout; Brandon Royval (6-3) will meet Jerome Rivera (7-1) at flyweight; and Maycee Barber (3-0) will take on Audrey Perkins (1-0) in a women’s strawweight contest.

Heinisch, from Colorado, will fight in front of his home fans. After starting his career a perfect 8-0, he was submitted by Markus Perez this past September at LFA 22 for his first loss. But he bounced back nicely in January with a second-round knockout of Daniel Madrid at LFA 31.

Checco, from Brazil, will fight for the first time in 20 months. The five-fight RFA veteran is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and went 3-2 under the RFA banner. He submitted Mkie Jasper in October 2015, then after 11 months off submitted Adam Stroup at RFA 43 in September 2016 for his most recent win.

The LFA 39 lineup includes:

• Ian Heinisch vs. Gabriel Checco – for interim middleweight title
• Hayward Charles vs. Jordan Wright
• Jerome Rivera vs. Brandon Royval
• Maycee Barber vs. Audrey Perkins

For more on LFA 39, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.