The upcoming UFC 227 card has taken a large hit according to Ariel Helwani of ESPN as Volkan Oezdemir has suffered an injury has has been pulled from UFC 227, where he was supposed to face Alexander Gustafsson.
UFC officials are seeking a replacement fighter to face Gustafsson on short notice, but Helwani also reports that there is no guarantee that Gustafsson stays on the card. There is also no word at this time as to the extent of the injury suffered by Oezdemir or how long the fighter may be out of action for.
Gustafsson (18-4-0) enters the contest on the strength of a two fight winning streak, defeating the duo of Jan Blachowicz and Glover Teixeira. Gustafsson hasn’t competed in over a year now, with his last bout taking place at UFC Fight Night 109 in May of 2017. Gustafsson has previously challenged twice before for the UFC Light Heavyweight Title, losing to former champion Jon Jones at UFC 165 and to current champion Daniel Cormier at UFC 192.
A short time after the bout cancellation was reports, a sorrowful Oezdemir issued the following statement on Instagram:
UFC 227 takes place on Saturday, August 4 from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California with TJ Dillashaw and Cody Garbrandt headlining. Fightful is providing live coverage of the event, with a post-show podcast to follow.
