Vitor Miranda was supposed to fight Julian Marquez next weekend at UFC On Fox 26, but then he pulled out of the fight and was replaced by Darren Stewart.
The Brazilian says a lot of things happening in his personal life is what led to the withdrawal from the event.
“There are a lot of things happening in my life right now,” Miranda told MMA Fighting. “I just got married, I’m opening my gym in Joinville, and my wife’s pregnancy demands more attention because she has symphysis pubis dysfunction, and that demands more time. Some reports came out wrong, saying that [pregnancy] was concerning. It’s not a concern, but that demands more time, and that affected my training, that reflected in the gym. My coaches started to notice, they asked me what's happening in my life because I wasn’t 100 percent in there (mentally), and we know you can’t fight in the UFC if you’re not 100 percent focused.”
Miranda was looking to end a two fight losing skid at the event and he hasn’t earned a victory in almost two years.
While Miranda was willing to fight at the event, it was conversations with his coaches and ultimately the UFC that lead to the decision being made.
“My manager and my coaches thought it was the best thing to do,” Miranda said. “We explained the situation to the UFC and they understood. We will wait for things to calm down and start to focus 100 percent in fighting again next year."
UFC On Fox 26 takes place on Saturday, December 16 from the MTS Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada with Robbie Lawler and Rafael Dos Anjos headlining. Fightful is providing live coverage of the event, which airs live on Fox.
