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Charles Oliveira will not make the walk at UFC 294 as Alex Volkanovski will step in against lightweight champion Islam Makhachev.
The main event between Makhachev and Volkanovski is a rematch of their epic duel from February at UFC 284 in Perth, Australia, where Makhachev bested “The Great” via unanimous decision.
The UFC announced the change Tuesday night, less than two weeks before the event’s Oct. 21 date.
THIS IS NOT A DRILL 😱
Charles Oliveira is out of next Saturday’s #UFC294 main event, @AlexVolkanovski is replacing in a rematch for the Lightweight title with @MakhachevMMA
[ @InAbuDhabi | #InAbuDhabi | @VisitAbuDhabi ] pic.twitter.com/zR3Nlqzl7P
— UFC (@ufc) October 11, 2023
UFC president Dana White confirmed the news himself and explained that Oliveira had sustained a cut in his eyebrow that would have made going forward unfeasible. He also didn’t seem happy Oliveira’s team took care of his stitches rather than go to the promotion and its own medical team:
“Round 5 of sparring last night, before he’s supposed to jump on a plane today, splits his eyebrow wide open. Had it stitched up last night. Obviously can’t fly out here with that.
“They didn’t call us. We would have had him go to a plastic surgeon. They would have sewed it from the inside-out, get that thing done the right way. These guys never call us like they should when something happens. They call us after they get it stitched up. On the flip side, too, I could see him not wanting to risk it, getting a shot like this.”
TSN’s Aaron Bronsteter initially confirmed that Oliveira suffered an injury and will be off the card. As far as Volkanovski being a replacement opponent is concerned, Bronsteter originally said he had yet to receive confirmation that “The Great” is indeed in for UFC 294. With that said, the renowned MMA journalist didn’t rule out an official announcement soon.