The UFC 248 lineup has apparently taken a hit.
Former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker has reportedly withdrawn from his UFC 248 bout against Jared Cannonier, per a Wednesday report from ESPN.
The reason for Whittaker’s withdrawal was not disclosed. It is unknown at this time if Cannonier (13-4 MMA, 6-4 UFC) will remain on the card.
Whittaker (20-5 MMA, 11-3 UFC) has not competed since losing his title to Israel Adesanya at UFC 243 in October. The second-round knockout loss snapped a nine-fight win streak dating back to 2014.
As for Cannonier, the Alaska-born fighter has been on a roll as of late. In his last three fights, Cannonier has finished David Branch, Anderson Silva, and Jack Hermansson by strikes in a combined 15:53 of fight time.
With the removal of Whittaker vs. Cannonier, the UFC 248 lineup now includes:
- Champ Zhang Weili vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk – for women’s strawweight title
- Jared Cannonier vs. TBA
- Danaa Batgerel vs. Guido Cannetti
- Polyana Viana vs. Emily Whitmire
- Li Jingliang vs. Neil Magny
- Beneil Dariush vs. Drakkar Klose
- Sean O’Malley vs. Jose Quinonez
- Calvin Kattar vs. Jeremy Stephens
- Max Griffin vs. Alex Oliveira
- Saparbek Safarov vs. Rodolfo Vieira
- Austin Hubbard vs. Mark Madsen
