Reiner de Ridder is no longer fighting Anthony Hernandez.
De Ridder and Hernandez were set to face off in the main event of UFC Vancouver next month; however, on Monday, the UFC revealed that “Fluffy” is out of the bout, and instead, “RDR” will now take on Brendan Allen in the main event.
It’s unclear what forced Hernandez out of the bout at this time, though rumors began to circulate before the UFC’s announcement, with fighters like Paulo Costa and Caio Borralho offering to step in to replace Hernandez.
It’s an unfortunate turn of events for both Hernandez and de Ridder. UFC CEO Dana White announced the matchup as part of a two-pack middleweight title eliminator of sorts before UFC Paris, which took place earlier this month. De Ridder vs. Hernandez would’ve served as the second piece of the puzzle, while Nassourdine Imavov currently sits in the driver’s seat following his unanimous decision win over Caio Borralho at Accor Arena. Now it’s unclear if that will affect the UFC’s decision as to who will challenge Khamzat Chimaev for the title next.
A former two-division champion in ONE, de Ridder (21-2) is 4-0 in the UFC since joining the promotion last year, and most recently won a split decision over Robert Whittaker at UFC Abu Dhabi in July.
Allen (25-7) is currently ranked No. 11 in the UFC’s middleweight rankings and is coming in off a unanimous decision win over Marvin Vettori at UFC 318.
UFC Vancouver takes place on Oct. 18 at Rogers Arena.
Damon Martin and Jed Meshew contributed to this report.
