According to a report from MMA Junkie, Ryan Hall has been forced to pull out of his fight with Ricardo Lamas on August 29.
The unique featherweight contender’s reason for withdrawing has not yet been disclosed, with the UFC not yet making an announcement regarding the change to the card. Lamas is still interested in fighting someone else at the UFC APEX event, but due to COVID-19 and the short notice drop out, that could prove to be quite difficult.
Lamas is attempting to bounce back following a devastating knockout loss to Calvin Kattar last June, whereas Hall was hoping to build some momentum for himself and improve his 4-0 UFC record.
In a statement on Instagram last year following the aforementioned loss to Kattar, Lamas detailed some of the injuries he suffered as a result of the defeat.
“Update: I suffered 3 fractures in my jaw during the fight. Been in the hospital since & had surgery yesterday. Titanium plates were installed. I asked the doctor to install small laser guns in my mouth that I could activate with my tongue and shoot through my teeth but he said that was impossible. I’d like to thank everyone who reached out with kind messages. I’d like to thank my family, my beautiful wife, who without I wouldn’t be able to live my dream, my parents & brothers who have all supported me from day one & all my extended family for their support as well as my sponsors. For my beloved city of Chicago, I’m sorry I let you down again, but I wanted to thank you for all the cheers you gave me during my introduction, it gave me chills and I will never forget it, Chicago truly has the best fans. For now, it’s quality time with my family & baby #3 coming early August which puts in perspective what’s really important in life.” – Ricardo Lamas on Instagram
While this fight has been stuck in an on again, off again roundabout for a long time now, many fans will continue to hope that we get to see these two highly skilled competitors square off at some point in the near future.
As for the August 29 card, this will be viewed as a blow to an event that many have been looking forward to. At the very least, though, the main and co-main should provide fans with some excitement.