Next week’s UFC Fight Night 201 card suddenly has started to take a few hits to the lineup.
Julian Marquez (9-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) is out of his middleweight matchup against Kyle Daukaus (10-2 MMA, 1-2 UFC). A person with knowledge of the matchup confirmed the news to MMA Junkie on Tuesday. The person requested anonymity because the UFC has not yet made a formal announcement.
In addition, Austin Lingo (9-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) is out of his featherweight fight against Jonathan Pearce (11-4 MMA, 2-1 UFC). It is not yet known if Daukaus or Pearce will remain on the card against new opponents.
UFC Fight Night 201 takes place Feb. 19 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card streams on ESPN+.
Marquez has post-fight bonuses in two straight fights. He submitted Maki Pitolo and, most recently, Sam Alvey at UFC on ABC 2 in April 2021. Marquez was scheduled to face Jordan Wright at UFC Fight Night 195 this past October, but the fight was canceled when Marquez withdrew with non-COVID health issues.
Daukaus, a former CFFC middleweight champion, is coming off a no contest against Holland this past October. Originally a submission win for Daukaus, the decision was overturned after replays revealed an accidental clash of heads knocked Holland unconscious and led to the fight-ending sequence.
Daukaus was supposed to fight Holland in a rematch at UFC Fight Night 197 this past November. Holland had to pull out with an injury. Then replacement Roman Dolidze was pulled due to COVID-19 protocols. Now his fight with Marquez, which was booked shortly after the Dolidze cancellation, is off.
With the changes, the UFC Fight Night 201 lineup now includes:
- Rafael dos Anjos vs. Rafael Fiziev
- Jamahal Hill vs. Johnny Walker
- Jessica-Rose Clark vs. Stephanie Egger
- Chad Anheliger vs. Jesse Strader
- Chas Skelly vs. Mark Striegl
- Diana Belbita vs. Gloria de Paula
- Kyle Daukaus vs. TBA
- Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Joaquin Buckley
- Jim Miller vs. Nikolas Motta
- Jonathan Pearce vs. TBA
- Mario Bautista vs. TBA
- Alan Baudot vs. Parker Porter
- Gabriel Benitez vs. David Onama
