Raphael Assuncao won’t be fighting on Feb. 27.
Scheduled to fight Raoni Barcelos in a pivotal bantamweight matchup, Assuncao (27-8 MMA, 14-7 UFC) has withdrawn from the UFC Fight Night event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas for unknown reasons.
Two people with knowledge of the situation informed MMA Junkie of the withdrawal but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Barcelos (16-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) has struggled to find matchups that hold up. Four of his past seven matchups have been canceled. A former RFA featherweight champion, Barcelos currently rides a nine-fight winning streak including victories over Said Nurmagomedov, Chris Gutierrez, and Kurt Holobaugh.
The UFC Fight Night event marks only the second time Assuncao has withdrawn from a fight since 2013.
With the change, the UFC Fight Night lineup for Feb. 27 includes:
- Jairzinho Rozenstruik vs. Ciryl Gane
- Raoni Barcelos vs. TBA
- William Knight vs. Alonzo Menifield
- Alexis Davis vs. Sabina Mazo
- Randy Brown vs. Alex Oliveira
- Hannah Cifers vs. Emily Whitmire
- Alex Caceres vs. Kevin Croom
- Magomed Ankalaev vs. Nikita Krylov
- Montana De La Rosa vs. Mayra Bueno Silva
- Alexander Hernandez vs. Thiago Moises
- Vince Cachero vs. Ronnie Lawrence
