The UFC Fight Night Edmonton card is still looking good, but it lost some serious star power on Friday night. Heavyweight star Derrick Lewis was forced out of his fight with Jhonata Diniz due to a non-weight-cut-related illness, per the UFC.
The issue happened too close to Saturday’s event, so the UFC had no time to find a replacement for Lewis. As it is, if Lewis’ problems aren’t so severe that it keeps him out of action for an extended period, it wouldn’t be a shock to see the fight added to an upcoming show–perhaps even UFC 309 on November 16 at Madison Square Garden.
Best wishes go to Lewis regarding his health issue. Also, it is tough luck for Diniz. The promising Brazilian heavyweight was on the cusp of the best opportunity of his professional MMA career.
The undefeated 33-year-old is 8-0. Diniz isn’t ranked, but a victory over No. 11 Lewis would have dropped him into the Top 15 of the division. Diniz is 3-0 in the UFC, including the first-round KO victory over Eduardo Neves in September 2023 in the Dana White Contender Series, which earned him a contract.
Since winning his way onto the roster, Diniz knocked out Austen Lane in April and won a unanimous decision over Karl Williams in August. If Diniz gets another fight added before the end of the year, there is still a path to the Top 15.
As for Lewis, the 39-year-old was looking for his second straight victory. Lewis knocked out Rodrigo Nascimento in May, and a win over Diniz might have positioned him for a slight bump if he had won convincingly.
There’s been no indication about the nature of Lewis’ illness. However, he reportedly weighed in at 266 pounds but could not make it to the actual weigh-ins on Friday.
Lewis made headlines earlier in the week when he revealed some issues he had with former opponent, UFC commentator, and former light heavyweight and heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier.
Lewis took issue with something Cormier said about him, and he called him a “piece of s###” on the Ariel Helwani Show. Cormier said he thinks Lewis had a problem with him suggesting he retire on the heels of a three-fight losing streak in 2023. Cormier will be on commentary for Saturday’s show.
With the cancellation of Lewis-Diniz, here is a look at the entire card set for Saturday.
Main Card – 8 pm ET – ESPN+
- Brandon Moreno vs. Amir Albazi
- Erin Blanchfield vs. Rose Namajunas
- Derrick Lewis vs. Jhonata Diniz
- Caio Machado vs. Brendson Ribeiro
- Marc-André Barriault vs. Dustin Stoltzfus
- Mike Malott vs. Trevin Giles
Preliminary Card – 5 pm ET – ESPN+
- Aiemann Zahabi vs. Pedro Munhoz
- Ariane da Silva vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius
- Charles Jourdain vs. Victor Henry
- Jack Shore vs. Youssef Zalal
- Alexander Romanov vs. Rodrigo Nascimento
- Serhiy Sidey vs. Garrett Armfield
- Chad Anheliger vs. Cody Gibson
- Jamey-Lyn Horth vs. Ivana Petrovic
Be on the lookout for post-fight coverage, including reactions to the main event, co-feature, and other noteworthy events.
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