The injury bug strikes again. The UFC's return to Brazil later this month has lost one-half of its main event.
Former UFC champion Junior dos Santos is out of a heavyweight clash with Stipe Miocic at the main event of TUF: Brazil 3 Finale card on May 31 in Sao Paulo, Brazil, with a fractured hand. Sources close to the situation confirmed the news to MMAFighting.com, following an initial report from Combate.
"I'm really sad. I apologize to my fans, to the UFC and to my opponent, Stipe Miocic, and hope to have another opportunity to fight in Brazil once my hand is healed," dos Santos said in a statement.
Grace Tourinho, the UFC's CEO in Brazil, told Combate that the promotion is looking for a new main event or a replacement to dos Santos.
TUF: Brazil 3 Finale was initially expected to be headlined by Chael Sonnen vs. Wanderlei Silva, but the light heavyweight bout was moved to UFC 175 in Las Vegas, Nev., when the Brazilian suffered injuries during a brawl with Sonnen during the reality show.
Scheduled for May 31 at the Ibirapuera Gymnasium in Sao Paulo, the event will feature TUF: Brazil middleweight and heavyweight finales. Demian Maia vs. Alexander Yakovlev and Rony Jason vs. Robbie Peralta complete the main card.
