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UFC Seattle used to look like one of the best Fight Night cards on paper, but its surface value is beginning to fade. The card lost its co-main event when Dominick Cruz suffered a shoulder injury that forced him to retire.
Now, another main card fight has been disrupted.
Edson Barboza was set to take on streaking KO master Steven Garcia, but the former is out of the fight with an injury, per Marcel Dorff of Tapology (h/t Krazy Kevin).
Barboza, 39, was looking to bounce back from a unanimous-decision loss to Lerone Murphy in May 2024. Prior to the loss to Murphy, the Brazilian legend had won two in a row, with victories over Billy Quarantillo (injury) and a unanimous decision win over Sodiq Yusuff.
As it stands, Garcia needs a new opponent. The event is set to happen on February 22, so if someone steps up, it would need to be an opponent willing to fight on something close to 10 days’ notice.
It’s not impossible, as we just saw Mashrabjon Ruziboev step in for Kauê Fernandes on four days’ notice to face Jared Gordon on Saturday’s card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
It will depend on whether the UFC can find a taker at featherweight and if Garcia is willing to face the replacement fighter. Garcia has won five fights in a row and has scored a knockout in each of those wins.
Garcia had hoped to gain a ranking with a win, as Barboza is currently No. 15. He may not want to accept a fight against an unranked opponent. For now, here is a look at the current UFC Seattle card:
- Henry Cejudo vs. Yadong Song – Bantamweight
- Brendan Allen vs. Alexander Hernandez – Middleweight
- Jean Silva vs. Melsik Baghdasaryan – Featherweight
- Ketlen Vieira vs. Macy Chiasson – Bantamweight
- Ion Cutelaba vs. Ibo Aslan – Light Heavyweight
- Modestas Bukauskas vs. Raffael Cerqueira – Light Heavyweight
- Ricky Simón vs. Javid Basharat – Bantamweight
- Andre Fili vs. Melquizael Costa – Featherweight
- Nick Klein vs. Mansur Abdul-Malik – Middleweight
- Adam Fugitt vs. Billy Ray Goff – Welterweight
The main event is still intact, with Cejudo taking on Song. Fans should also take note of any Silva fight—he is one of what feels like a never-ending line of championship prospects coming from the Fighting Nerds camp.
Vieira-Chiasson is a big fight, and finally, the Klein-Abdul-Malik bout is a battle between two of the best prospects from the most recent season of Dana White’s Contender Series.
What’s Next For UFC?
On Saturday in Las Vegas at the Apex, Jared Cannonier will try to hold on to his ranking as he takes on Gregory Rodrigues. Here is a look at the entire card.
UFC Vegas 102 – Fight Card
- No. 7 – Jared Cannonier vs. Gregory Rodrigues – Middleweight (185 lbs)
- No. 12 – Calvin Kattar vs. Youssef Zalal – Featherweight (145 lbs)
- Ismael Bonfim vs. Nazim Sadykhov – Lightweight (155 lbs)
- Jose Delgado vs. Connor Matthews – Featherweight (145 lbs)
- Edmen Shahbazyan vs. Dylan Budka – Middleweight (185 lbs)
- Rodolfo Vieira vs. Andre Petroski – Middleweight (185 lbs)
- No. 12 – Julia Avila vs. No. 13 – Jacqueline Cavalcanti – Bantamweight (135 lbs)
- Vince Morales vs. Elijah Smith – Bantamweight (135 lbs)
- Valter Walker vs. No. 15 – Don’Tale Mayes – Heavyweight (265 lbs)
- Rafael Estevam vs. Jesus Aguilar – Flyweight (125 lbs)
- No. 13 – Angela Hill vs. Ketlen Souza – Strawweight (115 lbs)
- Gabriel Bonfim vs. Khaos Williams – Welterweight (170 lbs)
- Jared Gordon vs. Mashrabjon Ruziboev – Lightweight (155 lbs)
