Two Bouts Pulled from UFC Riyadh Card Before Fight Night
Two bouts were removed from UFC Fight Night: Adesanya vs. Imavov during the final days before the February 1, 2025 card in Riyadh. The late changes mattered because one involved a featured middleweight matchup and the other altered the lightweight lineup. Neither withdrawal changed the main event: former champion Israel Adesanya still faced Nassourdine Imavov at anb Arena.
Muniz–Aliskerov was pulled over travel trouble
Andre Muniz was scheduled to meet Ikram Aliskerov in a middleweight bout. In the days before the event, the matchup was removed after Muniz ran into problems completing the trip to Saudi Arabia. Contemporary reports described the problem as visa-related; the UFC’s event update referred more generally to travel complications. Those accounts point to an administrative barrier rather than an injury or a result inside the cage. The report published at the time gives the context for why the bout disappeared so close to fight night.
The pairing had been one of the more recognizable supporting fights on the lineup, and its loss reduced the number of scheduled bouts for viewers following the card. It also deprived both middleweights of a chance to make a statement on a high-profile international show. Aliskerov was left without an opponent that week, while Muniz could not compete after the travel issue prevented him from reaching the event. The cancellation itself does not establish anything about either fighter’s form; it was a logistical change to the schedule.
Oki’s withdrawal left Al-Selwady without a bout
The lightweight matchup had already changed once: Abdul-Kareem Al-Selwady was first booked against Jordan Leavitt, then Bolaji Oki stepped in after Leavitt withdrew. On January 29, the UFC announced that Oki had been removed because of an injury, canceling the bout. The promotion’s official event update records both Oki’s injury and Muniz’s travel complications. Al-Selwady therefore lost two scheduled opponents in the lead-up, although the final cancellation notice concerned the Oki matchup.
The two changes arrived within roughly two days of each other and left the promotion with less time to find replacements. Late withdrawals are a familiar complication in MMA because fighters must be medically cleared, make weight, travel, and be available on the same short notice. The confirmed reasons were different: the UFC cited travel complications for Muniz and an injury for Oki. The published card changed without evidence that the event itself was in jeopardy.
The headline fight went ahead
Adesanya and Imavov remained booked for the main event, and the card proceeded in Riyadh on February 1. Imavov stopped Adesanya by knockout 30 seconds into the second round, a result that gave the event a decisive finish after the late lineup disruption. The UFC’s official results and highlights recap records the main-card outcome. Michael “Venom” Page also fought Sharabutdin Magomedov on the card, so the event retained another prominent matchup beyond the headliner.
In retrospect, the cancellations changed the depth of the supporting schedule but not the defining story of the night. The Muniz–Aliskerov bout was lost to a reported travel problem, and the UFC confirmed Oki’s injury as the reason Al-Selwady’s final scheduled opponent was removed. The main event survived both changes and delivered a clear winner. That is the useful distinction behind the “two cancellations” headline: two scheduled fights fell away late, while the event and its headline pairing carried on as planned.
