UFC 307 is set for Oct. 5 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. The card features a ton of fantastic fights like the return of light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira, as he is set to defend his title against knockout artist Khalil Roundtree Jr.
More Newsweek Sports: Mike Tyson Draws Concern for Upcoming Bout With Jake Paul, ‘It’s Hard to Walk’
The Pereira vs Roundtree bout is just one of two title fights set for the night, as current women’s bantamweight champion Raquel Pennington will face off against former champion Juliana Peña.
The main card alone is chock full of solid fights, but one showdown will not move forward. UFC 307 was set to be the return of Aljamain “Funkmaster” Sterling, but the former men’s featherweight champion announced his withdrawal from the card.
Sterling took to his Twitter/X page to announce his withdrawal, stating, “Unfortunately, I have to break the news that I will not be competing in Salt Lake City at UFC 307. In sparring, I had an injury.”
The above video shows the moment when Sterling is injured, which looks like it could have been a shoulder popping as a result of his sparring partner pulling too hard on his left arm.
“I did the stem cells. I took time off. I tried to rehab as much as I could, as best as I could with the PI team here. And unfortunately, it’s out of my hands now,” Sterling added.
Sterling added that his withdrawal was in the best interest of his current situation. His post also reads:
“I believe God has a plan and is protecting me to give my best for @MovsarUFC. I need all my tools for an opponent like Movsar and hopefully, he’s willing to fight me when I’m healed up. Thank you to the @UFC medical team for looking out for my health and protecting me from myself. This is a short delay and we will fight before the end of the year!”
Sterling makes his pitch to fight Movsar Evloev on another date in the video, and he also indicates that wish via social media. There is no telling if Evloev plans to accept the fight postponement request.
Sterling recently beat Calvin Kattar in April 2024 after losing the featherweight belt to Sean O’Malley at UFC 292 in Aug. 2023.
More news: Conor McGregor Reacts to Losing Opponent for UFC Comeback
Evloev, on the other hand, is still undefeated. He most recently beat Arnold Allen at UFC 297 in Jan. Evloev also has wins over Diego Lopes and Dan Ige. Basically, Evloev has the kind of resume that would warrant his getting a higher-ranked opponent instead of waiting for Sterling.
If Evloev does choose to wait, beating Sterling could catapult him into the top-ranked featherweight conversation, warranting a title fight against new champion Merab Devalishvili.
Read the full article here