Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 240 is down a man.
With [autotag]Heili Alateng[/autotag] out due to illness, the promotion is seeking a replacement bantamweight to fight [autotag]Victor Hugo[/autotag] on four days’ notice at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Two people with knowledge of the withdrawal informed MMA Junkie of it Tuesday but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Alateng (16-9-2 MMA, 4-2-1 UFC) most recently competed in October when he lost a unanimous decision to Chris Gutierrez. The defeat snapped a two-fight winning streak that included victories over Kevin Croom and Chad Anheliger.
Hugo (24-4 MMA, 0-0 UFC) has won 13 fights in a row. He earned his UFC contract with a submission of Eduardo Matias Torres Caut in 2023. Hugo was expected to debut vs. Daniel Marcos in November, but the fight was canceled after he missed weight.
With the change, the UFC Fight Night 240 lineup includes:
MAIN CARD (ESPN+, 6 p.m. ET)
- Brendan Allen vs. Chris Curtis
- Alexander Hernandez vs. Damon Jackson
- Morgan Charriere vs. Chepe Mariscal
- Ignacio Bahamondes vs. Christos Giagos
- Lukasz Brzeski vs. Valter Walker
- Charlie Campbell vs. Trevor Peek
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 3 p.m. ET)
- Court McGee vs. Alex Morono
- Germaine de Randamie vs. Norma Dumont
- Victor Hugo vs. TBA
- Cynthia Calvillo vs. Piera Rodriguez
- Dan Argueta vs. Jean Matsumoto
- Cesar Almeida vs. Dylan Budka
- Nora Cornolle vs. Melissa Mullins
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 240.