Picture Credit: Twitter
The flyweight bout between the Brazilian Rafael Estevam and Kazakhstanian Zhalgas Zhumagulov at the Prudential Center in Newark, Jersey for the UFC 288 event, has been cancelled due to a no show at pre-fight weigh-ins. The Brazilian Rafael Estevam was expected to make his UFC debut this Saturday, but reportedly, he didn’t make the 126-pound weight limit.
The news publication BJPenn, released a tweet in connection with the matter, which read, “Announced on the official weigh-in show: Estevam vs. Zhumagulov is canceled due to Estevam weight cutting complications.”
This will come as a massive setback for Rafael Estevam, who also had his previous fight in the UFC cancelled in April against Carlos Candelario. At that time, it was his opponent, the American, who suffered an injury and withdrew from the bout.
Estevam made a big name for himself last year at Dana White’s “Contender Series,” after attaining a technical knockout win against the fellow Brazilian, Joao Elias, to earn a fight at the big-time in the UFC. Meanwhile, Zhaglas Zhumagulov, who did make his weight at the pre-fight weigh-ins, will most likely get paid his purse for the bout.
UFC 288 will go ahead as planned on May 6 with twelve bouts, including five on the main card. The pay-per-view main-event will feature the return of the American Henry Cejudo as he will take on his fellow countryman Aljamain Sterling for the UFC Bantamweight Championship. Also, the co-main event will have yet another American Belal Muhammad take on the Brazilian Gilbert Burns in a bout in the welterweight division.
