There’s quite literally never a dull moment.
Just when you thought that the drama of UFC 223 fight week was over, Max Holloway has been deemed medically unfit to fight in the main event of the Brooklyn card.
Holloway was the UFC’s saviour last Sunday when he agreed to replace the injured Tony Ferguson and fight Khabib Nurmagomedov for the UFC’s lightweight title on six days’ notice.
The UFC featherweight champion’s nutritionist, George Lockhart, forewarned everybody that Holloway’s weight cut was tied for the largest in his career and it would appear that the cut got the better of the Hawaiian fighter.
Shortly after Nurmagomedov came in under the championship limit, news broke from New York that Holloway had been pulled from the card.
The news was first broken by ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, per Dana White, and despite Holloway’s insistence on continuing his cut, he’s been forced out of the main event.
BREAKING: Max Holloway has been declared medically unfit to fight. Holloway is out of UFC 223. Per Dana White.
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) April 6, 2018
“Max wants to keep pushing and is close but the doctors came up and just stopped it. Doctors stopped it not us. Max was going,” a member of Holloway’s camp told MMA Fighting reporter Ariel Helwani.
At the time of writing, it remains unknown whether Nurmagomedov will be offered another opponent although that is very unlikely as the weigh-ins have already taken place.
The co-main event, which will see Rose Namajunas defend her strawweight title against former champion Joanna Jędrzejczyk will move to the headlining slot in all likelihood.
