Ottman Azaitar will no longer be competing this Saturday at UFC 257.
Originally, Azaitar was set to face Matt Frevola on the main card of the pay-per-view. However, on weigh-in day, Azaitar did not weigh-in and the UFC issued a statement saying he was removed from the card due to breaking health and safety protocols.
“UFC is aware of a recent violation of the health and safety protocols involving Ottman Azaitar. As such, Azaitar has been removed from the safety zone and his upcoming bout against Matt Frevola has been canceled,” the statement read.
After the news was announced, it was likely that Frevola was going to be without a fight. However, fellow lightweight, Nasrat Haqparast did not weigh-in, so Frevola will now face Arman Tsaruykan.
Matt Frevola is on a two-fight winning streak after beating Jalin Turner and Luis Pena by decision. Before that, he had a draw against Lando Vannata at UFC 230. In his Octagon debut, he suffered an upset KO loss to Marco Polo Reyes in a minute, which is his only loss.
Arman Tsarukyan, meanwhile, is also on a two-fight winning streak after losing his UFC debut. The 24-year-old lost to Islam Makhachev by decision in his debut. He then rebounded to beat Olivier Aubin-Mercier and Davi Ramos by decision. Tsarukyan also holds wins over Junior Assuncao and Takenori Sato on the regional scene.
Although this fight has been made, Tsarukyan did miss weight by a pound and was fined 20 percent of his purse.
With the changes, UFC 257 is now as follows:
Main Card
- Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor
- Michael Chandler vs. Dan Hooker
- Joanne Calderwood vs. Jessica Eye
- Amanda Ribas vs. Marina Rodriguez
- Makhmud Muradov vs. Andrew Sanchez
Prelims
- Matt Frevola vs. Arman Tsarukyan
- Antonio Carlos Junior vs. Brad Tavares
- Sara McMann vs. Julianna Pena
- Marcin Prachnio vs. Khalil Rountree
Early Prelims
- Movsar Evloev vs. Nik Lentz
- Amir Albazi vs. Zhalgas Zhumagulov
