UFC Edmonton took a last minute hit as UFC heavyweight Derrick Lewis has been pulled from the event, and his fight against Jhonata Diniz, due to a medical issue.
The UFC announced the change on Friday evening.
Lewis (28-12) is dealing with a medical issue that is not related to cutting weight according to the promotion. This is the second time Lewis has had to pull from a fight after making weight.
The prior time he was supposed to face Serghei Spivac in November 2022. The fight eventually took place about 3 months later with Spivac coming out victorious via submission.
Lewis was coming into this fight against Diniz with a 2-3 record in his last five. He’s coming off a win against Rodrigo Nascimento, who also fights on UFC Edmonton, but with losses to Spivac and Jailton Almeida.
A fan-favorite, Derrick Lewis currently holds the record for most knockouts in UFC history. Originally set to face Alexandr Romanov he was rebooked against Diniz presumably to create a more fan-friendly fight.
This leaves the card with 13 bouts. There was no official announcement on what the medical issue Lewis is dealing with is. No word on if his fight with Diniz will be rebooked for a later date.
Ariane Da Silva vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius has officially been moved to the main card. Aiemann Zahabi vs. Pedro Munhoz serves as the featured prelim.
