A heavyweight bout pitting Derrick Lewis against Jhonata Diniz has been removed from the UFC Edmonton lineup.
The Las Vegas-based promotion announced on Saturday that a “medical issue” that wasn’t related to his weight cut forced Lewis to withdraw from the event. No further details were provided.
Lewis made weight on Friday morning, tipping the scales at 266 pounds for his matchup with Diniz. However, “The Black Beast” did not attend the ceremonial weigh-ins later that day, leading to speculation that the former heavyweight title challenger might not be able to fight.
UFC Edmonton will proceed with 13 bouts. A women’s flyweight clash between Ariane Lipski and Jasmine Jasudavicius has been elevated to the main card. The card is headlined by a flyweight showdown between Brandon Moreno and Amir Albazi.
One of the UFC’s most popular fighters and the promotion’s all-time knockout leader, Lewis has been victorious in two of his last three Octagon appearances. Most recently, the Houston native scored a third-round TKO victory against Rodrigo Nascimento in the UFC on ESPN 56 headliner on May 11.
