Dangerous striker Edson Barboza is reportedly out of his co-main event bout against the rising Ilia Topuria at UFC Vegas 63. According to MMA Fighting’s report. a right knee injury has forced the Brazilian to withdraw from the October 29 match. For now, it is unclear whether ‘El Matador’ will remain on the card.
Currently on a two-fight losing skid, Barboza (22-11) suffered a unanimous decision loss to Bryce Mitchell and a TKO one to Giga Chikadze in most recent outings. Before that, the 36-year-old was on a two-fight winning streak, with wins over Makwan Amirkhani and Shane Burgos, respectively in October 2020 and May 2021.
Meanwhile, Topuria (12-0) is looking for his fifth straight win in the Octagon, having already defeated Youssef Zalal, Damon Jackson, Ryan Hall and Jai Herbert, with three of the wins coming by way of knockout. In fact, the 25-year-old has 11 finishes on his professional record, with four KO’s and seven submissions.
UFC Vegas 63 is expected to take place on October 29, at the UFC Apex, in Las Vegas. The card is scheduled to be headlined by a featherweight bout between rising contender Arnold Allen and contender Calvin Kattar.