UFC 304 is down a man.
Bantamweight [autotag]Ramon Taveras[/autotag] is off the July 27 event at Co-op Live in Manchester, England due to “serious” injury, he announced Wednesday in a lengthy Instagram post.
Taveras (10-2 MMA, ) was matched with Ireland’s [autotag]Caolan Loughran[/autotag] (9-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC). It’s unclear if the promotion is seeking a replacement.
“It’s unfortunate I have to make a post like this but I’m going to trust in Gods plan and make the smart decision to avoid making my situation worse and prolong my return,” Taveras wrote on Instagram. “Today I had to pull from my fight next Saturday due to a serious injury. I worked so hard this fight camp and it sucks that it came to this.”
While Taveras didn’t reveal the specifics of the injury, he indicated camp was a mental and physical battle that ended in unfortunate fashion.
“I worked my way out of depression and into getting in the best shape I’ve been in,” Taveras wrote. “I stayed disciplined and got myself out of being fat (176) and mentally fu*ked. … But I promise to keep this same mentality during my recovery and become the best version of myself through this recovery process. You guys deserve the best version of me and that’s what I will give you guys. Wouldn’t want this midget getting a dub over me cause of an injury.”
Not typically one to bite his tongue, Loughran voiced displeasure in a social media post minutes after Taveras’ announcement. Loughran indicated he wants to remain on the card.
“Catch deez hands just pulled out,” Loughran wrote on X. “I text him a few days after the bout was signed saying he would. This Games not for everybody. The UFC are the best in the world and they’ll sort it. Been here before will fight anyone. Yeno that.”
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With the change, the UFC 304 lineup includes:
- Leon Edwards vs. Belal Muhammad – for welterweight title
- Tom Aspinall vs. Curtis Blaydes – for interim heavyweight title
- Bobby Green vs. Paddy Pimblett
- Manel Kape vs. Muhammad Mokaev
- Arnold Allen vs. Giga Chikadze
- Daniel Pineda vs. Nathaniel Wood
- Bruna Brasil vs. Molly McCann
- Caolan Loughran vs. TBA
- Lukasz Brzeski vs. Mick Parkin
- Christian Leroy Duncan vs. Gregory Rodrigues
- Oban Elliott vs. Preston Parsons
- Kiefer Crosbie vs. Sam Patterson
- Shauna Bannon vs. Alice Ardelean
- Modestas Bukauskas vs. Marcin Prachnio
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 304.