UFC cancels Jan. 26 PPV in Anaheim, moves UFC 233 to ‘later date’

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) won’t be able to pull a rabbit from its proverbial hat, much like it did for UFC 230, as no main event has been secured for the upcoming UFC 233 pay-per-view (PPV) card.

That's according to a report from ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, who points to a “combination of factors” in canceling the Jan. 26 show inside Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., and moving the event to a later date.

At least it wasn’t “murdered.”

Today’s news comes but one day after the planned co-main event between Dominick Cruz and John Lineker was axed due to the sad, but somewhat predictable injury to “Dominator” (more on that here).

It seems the promotion did not want to move forward with the few marquee bouts that were still available, like former UFC middleweight champion Robbie Lawler against former Bellator and ONE Championship titleholder, Ben Askren.

That bout is being targeted for UFC 235 on March 2 in Las Vegas, according to Ariel Helwani.

Several fights were in the works for the UFC 233 headliner, including Tyron Woodley vs. Colby Covington; however, “The Chosen One” was still recovering from something a hand injury and could not answer the call.

Not helping matters was the decision to move the Henry Cejudo vs. TJ Dillashaw flyweight title fight from UFC 233 to UFC on ESPN+ on Jan. 19 in Brooklyn, New York. I guess Brock Lesnar was too tiny to make his Octagon return when the promotion needed him the most.

UFC today released an official statement.

UFC today announced that the UFC 233 Pay-Per-View event scheduled for January 26 is postponed. All bouts previously slated for UFC 233 are being rescheduled for upcoming cards. The February 10th Pay-Per-View event at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne Australia will remain titled UFC 234: WHITTAKER VS GASTELUM. Tickets for UFC 234 sold out within minutes. UFC’s 2019 event calendar will still feature 12 Pay-Per-View events. Additional details about the postponed Pay-Per-View will be announced at a later date.

Expect more on this as the chips continue to fall, but don’t look for any tears from Bellator CEO Scott Coker, as his Jan. 26 “Fedor vs. Bader” card in nearby Inglewood will now run uncontested, both on television and at the box office.