Brad Tavares won’t be making his record-breaking walk to the octagon after all.
MMA Fighting confirmed with sources with knowledge of the change that a medical issue has forced Jun Yong Park to withdraw from his fight with Tavares, which was to serve as the UFC Vegas 94 UFC Vegas 94 middleweight co-main event. Both fighters successfully weighed in Friday morning.
The bout has also been officially announced as cancelled by the UFC, though the specifics of the medical issue were not revealed.
This bout was to be Tavares’ 25th UFC appearance, a record for the promotion’s middleweight division, breaking a tie with Hall of Famer Michael Bisping. It is not yet known if the bout will be rescheduled or if new bookings will be worked out for both fighters.
Park most recently fought this past December, when he dropped a split decision to Andre Muniz that snapped a four-fight win streak. “The Iron Turtle” is yet to compete in 2024.
UFC Vegas 94 proceeds with 11 scheduled bouts.
Mike Heck contributed to this report.
