Report: Broken Nose Forces Volkan Oezdemir’s Withdraw From UFC 227 Card

ESPN story on Volkan Oezdemir’s withdrawal from UFC 227 and what’s next for Alexander Gustafsson — https://t.co/prRsk6sUZj

— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) July 19, 2018

UFC light heavyweight contender Volkan Oezdemir has pulled out of his UFC 227 bout against Alexander Gustafsson. ESPN was the first to report that he suffered a nose injury on Thursday.

This marks the third time in just two months that Oezdemir has been forced out of a fight, with visa issues preventing him from fighting in May and this past weekend’s event in Germany. The former title challenger had been dealing with legal issues stemming from an alleged bar fight in Florida last year, but was cleared of a felony battery charge last week.

UFC 227 takes place in Los Angeles on Aug. 4 and will feature two title fight rematches between bantamweight champion T.J. Dillashaw and former champ Cody Garbrandt as well as flyweight kingpin Demetrious Johnson vs. Henry Cejudo.

It’s still unclear whether or not Gustafsson will remain on the card, as Ultimate Fighting Championship officials have yet to make a formal announcement yet on Oezdemir’s withdrawal from the card.

The 28-year-old Swiss native ran through the light heavyweight ranks after debuting against Ovince St. Preux last year. Oezdemir followed that fight with two quick knockout victories over Misha Cirkunov and Jimi Manuwa before earning a title shot against champion Daniel Cormier at UFC 220 in January.