Injured ‘Handz’ Cancels ‘Nomad’ Fight

Geoff Neal promised to ruin your parlay … though I’m not sure this is what he had in mind.

“Handz of Steal” suffered a late injury and was forced to withdraw from his upcoming welterweight bout against Shavkat Rakhmonov, according to an update from MMA reporter Igor Lazorin, previously scheduled for UFC Vegas 67 on Jan. 14 at APEX in Las Vegas.

“Apparently Geoff Neal is all talk,” Rakhmonov wrote on Twitter.

The search is on for a potential replacement which means matchmakers have to find someone on two weeks notice who will make weight (put down the Christmas cookies) and agree to fight one of the most dangerous up-and-coming combatants at 170 pounds.

The extent of Neal’s injury has yet to be determined.

Rakhmonov is a perfect 16-0 with all 16 wins ending by way of knockout or submission. “Nomad” was last seen strangling well-traveled veteran Neil Magny at UFC Vegas 57, a performance good enough to land him at No. 10 in the official welterweight rankings.

To see the revised UFC Vegas 67 fight card and ESPN+ lineup click here.