Top-ranked lightweight Khabib Nurmagomedov was scheduled to face second ranked Tony Ferguson in the UFC 209 co-main event on March 4, but was removed from the fight card after he was hospitalized due to issues with his weight cut. The bout was highly publicized and the winner likely to face champion Conor McGregor in his next outing. All of that changed on weigh-in day.
Late Sunday evening, Nurmagomedov issued an apology to the fans, the UFC, and Ferguson on Instagram. “I know that many people was waiting for this fight and I fail them,” he wrote. “Want to bring my apologies for all my fans, UFC and my opponent, Tony.”
