UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker has been pulled from his UFC 234 title defense against Kelvin Gastelum hours before the pay-per-view event. ESPN’s Brett Okamoto first reported the news, with Whittaker reportedly suffering from a hernia.
UFC president Dana White confirmed the news.
White added that the UFC middleweight champion will be undergoing surgery today to repair the hernia in his abdomen. We wish him the best in his recovery.
As a result of Whittaker’s injury, the co-main event between former champion Anderson Silva and rising prospect Israel Adesanya has been promoted to the main event.
Lando Vannata vs. Marcos Rosa, which was slated to headline the UFC Fight Pass preliminary card, has been promoted to the pay-per-view main card, according to the latest UFC 234 bout lineup.
UFC 234 airs on UFC Fight Pass, ESPN, and pay-per-view. The main card will begin at 10:00 p.m. ET.
UFC 234: Fight Time & Viewing Details
Event: UFC 234: Whittaker vs. Gastelum
Date: Saturday, February 10, 2019
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Venue: Rod Laver Arena
Pay-Per-View Card Time: 10:00 p.m. ET
Broadcast: UFC Fight Pass, ESPN, Pay-per-view
UFC 234 Fight Card
Main Card (10 PM ET, PPV)
Robert Whittaker vs. Kelvin Gastelum- Israel Adesanya vs. Anderson Silva — new main event
- Rani Yahya vs. Ricky Simon
- Montana De La Rosa vs. Nadia Kassem
- Jim Crute vs. Sam Alvey
Preliminary Card (8 PM ET, ESPN)
- Devonte Smith vs. Dong Hyun Ma
- Shane Young vs. Austin Arnett
- Kai-Kara France vs. Raulian Paiva
- Teruto Ishihara vs. Kyung Ho Kang
Preliminary Card (6:30 PM ET, UFC Fight Pass)
- Lando Vannata vs. Marcos Rosa — promoted to pay-per-view main card
- Jalin Turner vs. Callan Potter
- Wuliji Buren vs. Jonathan Martinez