Top Swedish light heavyweight Alexander Gustafsson will not be able to fight at the UFC 227 tournament, scheduled for August 4 in Los Angeles. A few days ago his opponent Volkan Ozdemir also dropped out because of the nose fracture, so the participation of the Swede was under a big question.
Gustafsson's manager, Nima Safapur, issued the following statement:
"Alex Gustafsson withdraws from UFC 227 due to a minor injury, received last week. Since that time, we have been closely monitored by the UFC doctors, our own doctors and experts at the UFC Performance Institute. We were told that Gustafsson had a minor injury and would not be allowed to perform at UFC 227. If Alex was ready to fight, we would have taken a fight with Runtree or someone else, as requested by the UFC, including the fight with Cormier in the heavyweight.
“Alex will be fighting again very soon. Soon he will tell us about the situation from his point. For us, the opponent does not matter, but this fight should be significant from the point of view of the fight for the champion's title in light heavyweights."
Tonight Anthony Smith knocked out Mauricio Rua and after the fight announced his desire to meet Gustafsson at UFC 227. However, unfortunately, a few hours later there was news of the withdrawal of the Swede from the tournament.
