Bethe Correia pulled from UFC 227 fight with Irene Aldana

UFC 227 has lost one of its bouts on just a few days’ notice.

The bantamweight clash between Bethe Correia and Irene Aldana has been scrapped from Saturday’s pay-per-view show at Staples Center in Los Angeles, sources confirmed with MMA Fighting after an initial report by Combate. The UFC officially announced Tuesday that Correia was “forced to withdraw” from the fight.

Correia was originally expected to fight Aldana earlier this year, but had to undergo eye surgery last November and was forced out of action for months. The UFC opted to re-book the matchup for UFC 227, but she was ultimately ruled unfit to compete because of ongoing eye issue, sources said.

The UFC said there will not be a replacement fight made, and the card will proceed with 12 bouts.

Aldana, the Mexican bantamweight, hasn’t fought since January, when she scored her first Octagon victory over Talita Bernardo. Correia (10-3-1) was last seen in the Octagon in June 2017, losing to former UFC champion Holly Holm.

Speaking with MMA Fighting two weeks before UFC 227, Correia admitted she feared for her MMA career after the eye injury, but says everything went perfect during her training camp.

“I was concerned if I would be able to train again, if it would support the camp,” Correia said. “A fight only lasts a few minutes, but a training camp is months of hard work and hard training. I spoke a lot with my doctor, I was afraid, but he said everything would be alright. When you have an injury you’re afraid you won’t be the same again, but I was confident again and everything went great.”

UFC 227 features a pair of title bouts, with T.J. Dillashaw taking on Cody Garbrandt and Demetrious Johnson facing Henry Cejudo.