UFC Abu Dhabi Loses Major Fight Just Hours Before Start Time

Today’s UFC Abu Dhabi event lost a scheduled main card fight shortly before the action kicked off.

Taking place at the Etihad Arena, this year’s edition of UFC Abu Dhabi is headlined by a light heavyweight bout between former UFC champion Magomed Ankalaev and Bogdan Guskov, who stepped in to replace Khalil Rountree Jr. after the former title challenger withdrew with an injury.

All 26 fighters scheduled to compete successfully made weight ahead of the event, but a medical issue overnight unfortunately pulled one major name off the card and scrapped one of the 13 scheduled fights.

UFC Abu Dhabi Loses Islam Dulatov vs. Wellington Turman

Shortly before the event’s 9:00 a.m. ET start time in The United States, the UFC announced that the UFC Abu Dhabi matchup between Islam Dulatov and Wellington Turman was off due to a medical issue on the part of Dulatov.

#UFCAbuDhabi Official Update: Due to illness, Islam Dulatov is out of his welterweight bout against Wellington Turman.

As a result, this bout has been cancelled from tonight’s main card.@VisitAbuDhabi | @InAbuDhabi | #InAbuDhabi https://t.co/Pv9hsZlcsm
— UFC News (@UFCNews) July 25, 2026

Dulatov’s team also took to the fighter’s Instagram account to update fans and share a more detailed explanation for the withdrawal in multiple languages.

The statement from Islam Dulatov's team. | (Instagram)

The news came as a major disappointment for many MMA fans, as Dulatov was widely expected to put on another dominant performance in his second UFC outing in Abu Dhabi.

Islam Dulatov Was the Biggest Favorite at UFC Abu Dhabi

Boasting a 12-1 record in professional MMA, Dulatov dropped a decision in his debut in 2019 but hasn’t tasted defeat or seen the judges’ scorecards (outside of a boxing win in 2023) since then.

Islam Dulatov (blue gloves) walks on after defeating Adam Fugitt (red gloves) during UFC 318 at Smoothie King Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

A buzzer-beater finish in his one-off outing with Oktagon MMA in 2024 earned Dulatov a chance to fight on Dana White’s Contender Series, where he stopped Vanilto Antunes with an elbow in the opening round to secure a UFC contract.

Adam Fugitt (red gloves) fights against Islam Dulatov (blue gloves) during UFC 318 at Smoothie King Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

“The Ripper” made his promotional debut at UFC 318 and knocked out Adam Fugitt late in the first round to extend his winning run to 12 fights and also secure a “Performance of the Night” bonus for his efforts.

Wellington Turman Last Competed for the UFC in 2023

While there was certainly some excitement around Dulatov’s second UFC fight in Abu Dhabi, the matchup with Turman was also widely criticized as a bit of a mismatch from the time it was first announced.

Wellington Turman (red gloves) fights Jared Gooden (blue gloves) during UFC Fight Night at Moody Center. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

Turman has been on the UFC roster since 2019 but was scheduled to return from a nearly three-year layoff to face Dulatov, and the Brazilian was also entering the night on a three-fight skid that left his overall UFC record at 3-6.

Randy Brown (red gloves) fights Wellington Turman (blue gloves) in a welterweight bout during UFC Fight Night at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

UFC Abu Dhabi still features a total of 12 fights, and you can stay up to date with all of the action right here.

UFC Abu Dhabi Main Card

Main Event: Magomed Ankalaev vs. Bogdan Guskov

Co-Main Event: Steve Erceg vs. Ramazan Temirov

Damian Rzepecki vs. Magomed Zaynukov

Rizvan Kuniev vs. Tyrell Fortune

Abubakar Vagaev vs. Saygid Izagakhmaev

UFC Abu Dhabi Preliminary Card

Valter Walker vs. Thomas Petersen

Axel Sola vs. Ismael Bonfim

Dustin Jacoby vs. Muhammad Said

Santiago Ponzinibbio vs. Sam Patterson

Nurullo Aliev vs. Mike Davis

Magomed Tuchalov vs. Brendson Ribeiro

Cody Gibson vs. Abdul Hussein

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