Mounir Lazzez-Niklas Stolze Scratched From UFC on ESPN 28 Due to Visa Issues

Another hit for #UFCVegas33, the new co-main event of Lazzez-Stolze is off. Lazzez has visa issues (shouldn't he have been in Vegas by now?) and Stolze will remain on the card against an unnamed replacement, per Stolze's Instagram. pic.twitter.com/mFfUtAXdkP

— Jay Pettry (@jaypettry) July 27, 2021

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC, PFL and “The Ultimate Fighter” live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app.

Advertisement

In a short span of time, UFC on ESPN 28 has lost two main card fights.

On Tuesday news broke that Mounir Lazzez won’t fight Niklas Stolze in a welterweight scrap on Saturday. Stolze took up to his social media accounts to share the information, revealing that his opponent had some visa issues that prevented him from entering the United States. On Tuesday, sources in Stoltze's camp informed Sherdog that Stoltze has been offered a non-co-main event matchup with Jared Gordon (17-6, 0-2 UFC).

A day prior, the card lost the originally scheduled co-main event after the Chris Daukaus vs. Shamil Abdurakhimov heavyweight matchup had once again been called off. At the moment of writing, the promotion hasn’t announced the new co-main event yet.

Stolze (12-4, 0-1 UFC) failed to impress the judges in his promotional debut at UFC on ESPN 14, where he dropped a decision to Ramazan Emeev. Previously, the German fighter put together a four-bout winning streak that earned him a golden ticket to the UFC.

Lazzez (10-2, 1-1 UFC) started his stint in the UFC on the right foot when he upended Abdul Razak Alhassan at UFC on ESPN 13. In his latest Octagon appearance, he suffered his first stoppage when Warlley Alves put “Sniper” away with body kicks and punches at the 2:35 mark in the opening round at UFC on ESPN 20.

UFC on ESPN 28 will take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on July 31. In the main event, Uriah Hall will lock horns with Sean Strickland in a 185-pound clash. The main card will also feature Cheyanne Buys vs. Gloria de Paula in a women’s strawweight tilt and Kyung Ho Khang vs. Rani Yahya at bantamweight.