Volkan Oezdemir out of UFC 227 fight against Alexander Gustafsson

The injury bug has affected UFC 227 once again.

An injury has officially forced light heavyweight contender Volkan Oezdemir out of his scheduled August 4 bout against Alexander Gustafsson. MMA Fighting confirmed the news Thursday following an initial report by ESPN, which reported that a broken nose is the culprit for Oezdemir’s withdrawal.

The UFC is actively seeking a replacement opponent to keep Gustafsson on the card.

The news continues a rough stretch for Oezdemir (15-2) in 2018. After erupting on the light heavyweight scene in 2017 with a trio of upset wins over Ovince Saint Preux, Misha Cirkunov, and Jimi Manuwa, the 28-year-old Switzerland native lost his title shot to Daniel Cormier via second-round TKO in January, then was twice forced out of scheduled bouts opposite Mauricio Rua as a result of visa issues.

Gustafsson (18-4), meanwhile, was hoping to cement his claim as the No. 1 light heavyweight contender with a positive showing against Oezdemir. The 31-year-old Swede has won back-to-back fights since his title loss to Cormier, first claiming a unanimous decision over Jan Blachowicz in 2016, then notching a fifth-round knockout of Glover Teixeira in 2017.

UFC 227 takes place August 4 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. A pair of championship rematches, T.J. Dillashaw vs. Cody Garbrandt and Demetrious Johnson vs. Henry Cejudo, headline the pay-per-view event.