For those anticipating Olympic gold medalist Henry Cejudo’s UFC debut this weekend, the wait just got a little longer. The UFC announced that Cejudo — who was slated to face Scott Jorgensen on UFC 177’s prelims — has been forced to withdraw from the bout for “medical reasons.”
The flyweight Cejudo was to be making his long-awaited UFC debut after beginning his MMA career in early 2013. Cejudo, who won a gold medal at the 2008 summer Olympics in Beijing in the 121-pound class, has gone 6-0 in his young career, including a 2-0 stint in Legacy FC.
Though no details were given as to why Cejudo was forced off the card, Andy Foster — the Executive Director of the California State Athletic Commission — told MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani that it wasn’t the commission’s doing, meaning either Cejudo or the UFC made the call.
This marks the fourth time that the wrestler has fallen off a card in the last nine months. He previously withdrew from bouts at Legacy 25, 31 and 34.
Jorgensen, who snapped a three-fight losing streak in June against Danny Martinez, tweeted that he was disappointed in the cancellation of his fight.
“Made weight @ 11am, stepping out of the sauna got a call saying fights off. Extremely disappointed & bummed @KitCope & I put in so much work,” Jorgensen tweeted.
UFC 177 will now go on with a total of nine bouts, headlined by T.J. Dillashaw, who will defend his bantamweight title against Renan Barao.