Amir Albazi is out of Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 71 – but not on his own accord.
In his first statement since news he withdrew from his main event vs. Tatsuro Taira, Albazi (17-2 MMA, 5-1 UFC) said Tuesday the decision not to compete was made by the UFC and Nevada Athletic Commission. He did not reveal injury specifics.
“I’m heartbroken to announce that I won’t be fighting on August 2nd,” Albazi wrote on Instagram. “I finished my whole training camp and did everything I could, but I wasn’t medically cleared in time. The UFC and the commission made the call for my safety. I respect their decision even though I wanted to step in to that cage and take care of business. I’ll be back stronger and better. this is just a setback, not the end. Thank you to my fans, my team, and everyone who supports me through the ups and downs.”
Albazi, was removed from the bout late last week, and was replaced by South Korean up-and-comer Hyun Sung Park (10-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC), who will now face Taira (16-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) at the UFC Apex.
Albazi’s injury extends his stretch of inactivity beyond the nine-month mark. He’s only competed once since June 2023, having also undergone neck surgery in January 2024. he returned in November and lost a unanimous decision to Brandon Moreno.
The current UFC on ESPN 71 lineup includes:
- Tatsuro Taira vs. Hyun Sung Park
- Chris Duncan vs. Mateusz Rebecki
- Elves Brener vs. Esteban Ribovics
- Nora Cornolle vs. Karol Rosa
- Neil Magny vs. Elizeu Zaleski
- Danny Silva vs. Kevin Vallejos
- Nick Klein vs. Andrey Pulyaev
- Nathan Fletcher vs. Rinya Nakamura
- Tresean Gore vs. Rodolfo Vieira
- Felipe Bunes vs. Rafael Estevam
- Piera Rodriguez vs. Ketlen Souza
- Austin Bashi vs. John Yannis
