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The co-main event of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night has been called off, and one of the fighters says the reason stems from a shove at the previous day’s weigh-in.
Drakkar Klose was set to face Jeremy Stephens in Las Vegas, but felt his hand go numb and neck tighten up after Stephens gave him a hard shove during their face-off on Friday. After receiving two hours of treatment, Klose said he woke up Saturday with a migraine or headache as well as nausea.
Klose eventually went to the hospital after further treatment, forcing the fight to be called off.
Klose’s full statement:
Per ESPN’s Ariel Helwani, Klose’s team later reported a CT scan revealed the fighter sustained a cervical sprain of the neck and a concussion from the push.
Here is the shove in question, with the two fighters nose-to-nose before Stephens pushes Klose away:
Per Yahoo Sports’ Kevin Iole, a catchweight bout between Tracy Cortez and Justine Kish was elevated to the main card to replace Stephens-Klose. The heavyweight matchup between Chase Sherman and Andrei Arlovski was elevated as the new co-main event.
The development is a tough blow for the 33-year-old Klose, who hasn’t fought in the Octagon since March 2020, and hasn’t recorded a win since August 2019. He currently holds a record of 11-2-1. Meanwhile, Stephens hasn’t won a bout since Feb. 2018, with four losses and a no-contest in the time since.
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