And then there were 11, as in only 11 fights that will now take place tonight at “UFC 159: Jones vs. Sonnen” after welterweight Nick Catone (pictured) was forced to withdraw from his scrap with James Head at the 11th hour due to dehydration.
“Following a trip to the hospital for dehydration, Nick Catone has been scratched from his UFC 159 bout with James Head, scheduled for tonight at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey,” the UFC expressed in a statement Saturday morning. “The event will proceed as scheduled with 11 bouts.”
Catone tipped the scale at 173 pounds at Friday’s weigh-ins, two pounds over the limit for a non-title welterweight affair. Head, meanwhile, clocked 170.25 pounds and will likely be paid his show purse despite not having to compete.
The fight was initially slated to proceed as planned, with Catone being docked 20 percent of his show purse for missing weight, but the UFC was forced to pull the 31-year-old after his trip to the hospital.
Not necessarily a devastating hit to the lineup. The 170-pound affair was scheduled to stream during the Facebook portion of the prelims.
UFC 159 takes place inside Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
Here is tonight’s revised roster:
Preliminary Card:
(Facebook 7PM ET/4PM ET)
Steven Siler vs. Kurt Holobaugh
Leonard Garcia vs. Cody McKenzie
(FX 8PM ET/5PM PT)
Rustam Khabilov vs. Yancy Medeiros
Sara McMann vs. Sheila Gaff
Ovince St. Preux vs. Gian Villante
Johnny Bedford vs. Bryan Caraway
Main Card:
(Pay-Per-View 10PM ET/7PM PT)
Jim Miller vs. Pat Healy
Vinny Magalhaes vs. Phil Davis
Roy Nelson vs. Cheick Kongo
Michael Bisping vs. Alan Belcher
Chael Sonnen vs. Jon Jones (UFC light heavyweight champion)
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