Elizeu Zaleski withdraws from UFC Vegas 51 fight with Mounir Lazzez due to personal reasons

UFC Vegas 51 has lost another exciting match-up with Elizeu Zaleski pulling out of Saturday’s clash with Mounir Lazzez due to personal reasons, MMA Fighting has learned.

It’s still unclear if the UFC will find a replacement opponent to face Lazzez at the UFC APEX on April 16.

Zaleski (23-7) hasn’t fought since a dominating victory over Benoit Saint-Denis at UFC 267 in Abu Dhabi, rebounding from a controversial split decision defeat to Muslim Salikhov.

Lazzez (10-2) is returning for his first bout since January of 2021, when he lost to Warlley Alves in the United Arab Emirates. “The Sniper” was slated to meet Niklas Stolze in July of that year in Las Vegas but had to withdraw due to visa issues.

UFC Vegas 51 will be headlined by a rematch between Vicente Luque and Belal Muhammad. With the cancelation of the original co-main event between Uriah Hall and Andre Muniz, Caio Borralho vs. Gadzhi Omargadzhiev is now the second-to-last bout of the night.