The UFC Dublin fight card took a major hit on Tuesday when the co-main event between heavyweights Stipe Miocic and Ben Rothwell fell apart due to injury. The event is slate for Saturday, Oct. 24.
Miocic had to withdraw from the bout due to an undisclosed injury. MMAWeekly.com confirmed the news with multiple independent sources after MMAJunkie.com first reported the change.
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Miocic (13-2) has been considered one of the top two or three contenders to UFC heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum, and currently sits at No. 3 in the official UFC rankings. A loss to No. 2 ranked Junior dos Santos in December put a major dent in his hopes for a title shot, but Miocic bounced back with an impressive TKO stoppage of Mark Hunt earlier this year. He was hoping a win over the surging Rothwell would help cement his position in the race for the championship.
Rothwell (35-9) has been bursting out of his journeyman role of late, winning three fights in succession over Brandon Vera, Alistair Overeem, and Matt Mitrione. A win over Miocic would have vaulted him into the title-talk mix, but is now left in a wait-and-see mode, as the UFC ponders what to do about the UFC Fight Night 76 co-main event slot with only a week and a half to come up with a solution.
The fight card should draw well in an MMA-starved Dublin. It features home-grown talent Joseph Duffy in the main event opposite Dustin Poirier, as well as several other Irish fighters, but it took a significant hit for international audiences with the loss of what would have been a solid heavyweight co-main event.
Immediately prior to publication, UFC Vice President of Public Relations Dave Sholler tweeted, “Can confirm that Miocic is out of Dublin fight. We are reviewing options for a potential replacement. Wish Miocic a speedy recovery.”
