Weight-cut issues take Saparbek Safarov out of UFC Fight Night 182 vs. Julian Marquez

UFC Fight Night 182 has lost one of its main card fights the day before the show.

Due to weight-cutting issues, Saparbek Safarov (9-3 MMA, 1-3 UFC) has been pulled from his middleweight fight against Julian Marquez (7-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC) and the fight has been scrapped, the UFC announced Friday.

UFC Fight Night 182 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card streams on ESPN+.

Marquez was set to return after a layoff of more than two years. After a second-round submission win over Darren Stewart in his UFC debut, Marquez suffered a torn latissimus dorsi in a split decision loss to Alessio Di Chirico at the TUF 27 Finale in July 2018. Two surgeries followed, and now his return is on hold again.

Safarov who has one win in four UFC appearances – a unanimous decision win over Nicolae Negumereanu in March 2019. In his most recent outing at UFC 248 in March, Safarov was submitted in the first round by Rodolfo Vieira.

With the removal, the UFC Fight Night 182 lineup now includes:

MAIN CARD (ESPN+, 7 p.m. ET)

• Rafael dos Anjos vs. Paul Felder
• Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Khaos Williams
• Kay Hansen vs. Cory McKenna
• Eryk Anders vs. Antonio Arroyo
• Brendan Allen vs. Sean Strickland

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 4 p.m. ET)

• Miranda Granger vs. Ashley Yoder
• Rhys McKee vs. Alex Morono
• Louis Smolka vs. Jose Quinonez
• Randa Markos vs. Kanako Murata
• Geraldo de Freitas vs. Tony Gravely
• Don’Tale Mayes vs. Roque Martinez