By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Former lightweight king Charles Oliviera will not be seeing action in the main event of UFC 294 after reports confirmed that he suffered a deep cut in his eyebrow that will hinder his quest to reclaim his championship title.
UFC president Dana White then announced the major development, saying that Oliviera will be pulling out against Islam Makhachev this coming October 21, 2023.
White explained that Oliviera sustained the cut during his final preparation phase for the fight and had to be replaced.
Taking place for Oliviera is featherweight superstar Alexander Volkanovski who courageously accepted the challenge on short notice.
Both Oliviera and Volkanovski lost to Makhachev during their recent fights and are longing to get back at the reigning lightweight Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) champion.
Now that Oliviera will have to take a back step, Volkanovski will have another shot and look to win back-to-back fights in just three months.
Volkanovski was close in handing Makhachev a loss but a late run from the champion turned the tides, rewarding him with a unanimous decision victory.
Against Oliviera, the Russian mixed martial artist had a walk in the park and stunned him with an arm-triangle choke in the second round of their world title clash.
This is a tough challenge for Volkanovski after only left with almost two weeks of preparation against a well-prepared Makhachev.
