UFC welterweight striker, Geoff Neal has reportedly been forced from his upcoming UFC Vegas 67 co-main event clash with the unbeaten division standout, Shavkat Rakhmonov due to injury, with the promotion currently searching for an opponent to replace Neal and fight Rakhmonov on January 14.
According to an initial report from Tass reporter, Igor Lazorin, Neal has suffered an undisclosed injury ahead of his scheduled January 14. fight with Shavkat Rakhmonov, forcing the tie from the UFC Vegas 67 card entirely.
UFC is actively searching for a replacement fight for Shavkat Rakhmonov
“Shavkat Rakhmonov’s fight against Geoff Nea cancelled,” Igor Lazorin posted on Instagram. Neal came up with an injury. UFC is looking for a replacement. The fight is scheduled for January 134. Shavkat’s new opponent, we are looking for you.”
In the midst of a two-fight winning run, welterweight kickboxer, Neal managed to recently land a split decision win over Argentine veteran, Santiago Ponzinibbio, to go with an August knockout win over the highly-touted contender, Vicente Luque.
Riding a stunning 16-fight undefeated professional run, Rakhmonov, who boasts a staggering 100% finish rate with eight submissions and a further eight knockout wins, most recently dispatched common-foe, Neil Magny back in June with a guillotine choke win.
A former M-1 Global welterweight champion, Rakhmonov landed in the UFC back in 2020, defeating Alex Oliveira, before recording finishes over both Michal Prazeres, and Carlston Harris ahead of his summer submission win over Magny.
At the time of publication, an official replacement for Texas striker, Neal has yet to be determined by the organization, with Rakhmonov currently sitting as the #10 ranked welterweight in the official division pile following his win over Magny.
UFC Vegas 67 takes place on January 14. from the UFC Apex facility in Las Vegas, Nevada – with a main event fight between former interim middleweight title challenger, Kelvin Gastelum, and the surging, Nassourdine Imavov set to take main event status.