UFC 256: ‘Serious medical issue’ boots Amanda Nunes from Megan Anderson main event

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) will say goodbye to yet another headlining affair as reigning women’s featherweight champion Amanda Nunes, who also wears gold at 135 pounds, has withdrawn from her Megan Anderson fight at UFC 256.

That means the bantamweight title bout pitting Petr Yan against Aljamain Sterling will likely be promoted to main event for the Dec. 12 pay-per-view (PPV) card, scheduled for APEX facility in Las Vegas, Nevada, though UFC has yet to confirm the change.

“All I was told was she has a ‘serious medical issue’ and that they’re working on rescheduling the bout currently,” Anderson said (via ESPN). “Obviously, it sucks because we’ve been working so hard for this, but I hope she has a speedy recovery and the goal remains the same. Nothing has ever come easy for me. This is just another part of the journey and we’ll be ready for whatever date they set. Our time is coming one way or another.”

Nunes (20-4) has won 11 straight fights across two separate divisions, scoring seven violent finishes along the way. She’s widely considered the greatest female UFC fighter of all time after finishing former champions Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate, as well as Cris Cyborg and Holly Holm.

As for Anderson (11-4), she’s had a hot-and-cold run since crossing over from Invicta FC back in summer 2018. After an upset loss to Felicia Spencer at UFC Fight Night 152, the Aussie rebounded with consecutive wins over Zarah Fairn dos Santos (UFC 243) and Norma Dumont Viana (UFC Fight Night 169).

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