Rodolfo Vieira and Ilia Topuria have both pulled out of their fights at UFC 270, meaning the event is down to just 11 fights.
Multiple-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion Vieira was supposed to open the main card against Wellington Turman, but ESPN Deportes reported that an undisclosed reason has forced him to withdraw.
Undefeated featherweight Topuria was scheduled to meet Charles Jourdain on the preliminary card, but pulled out due to a medical issue according to Eurosport Espana.
ESPN Deportes' report states that Trevin Giles vs Michael Morales, a welterweight fight booked for the prelims, has now been bumped up to the main card.
MMA Fighting also learned Vieira's cancelled middleweight clash is not expected to be re-scheduled and Turman will be paid his show money for the fight.
Vieira - who holds a BJJ record of 97-12 - made his UFC debut in 2019 and unsurprisingly cruised past his first two opponents by submission.
In one of the biggest UFC upsets in recent years, Vieira was tapped out by Anthony Hernandez at UFC 258 last February.
But the talented grappler rebounded later that year by submitting Dustin Stoltzfus to earn his first $50,000 bonus in the UFC.
Topuria was signed to the UFC in 2020 and won his promotional debut by outpointing Youssef Zalal.
'El Matador' has since won consecutive fights by knockout, stopping talented grappler Ryan Hall at UFC 264 in his last fight.
Who wins in the main event of UFC 270, Francis Ngannou or Ciryl Gane? Let us know your prediction in the comments section below
Topuria was originally scheduled to face undefeated Movsar Evolev at UFC 270 event, but Jourdain repalced Evolev after the Russian withdrew due to a positive Covid-19 test.
And Jourdain weighed in on Topuria's withdrawal by stating he made weight for the fight despite it being cancelled.
"145. I'm not allowed on the official scale cause the fight is off. 9 days. I did my part," he wrote.
UFC 270 is headlined by a heavyweight title fight between undisputed champion Francis Ngannou and interim titleholder Ciryl Gane.
In the co-main event, flyweight champion Brandon Moreno defends his title for the first time in a trilogy fight with rival and former champion Deiveson Figueiredo.
