UFC 309 went almost completely smoothly on Saturday; we say almost since one of the highly anticipated preliminary battles was canceled just a few hours before the fighters were to make the walk.
Just minutes into the broadcast, veteran commentator Jon Anik revealed that Eryk 'Ya Boi' Anders had withdrawn from his fight with former champion Chris Weidman – with the American power-puncher now revealing why he was forced out of the match.
Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
Eryk Anders reveals why he had to pull out of the UFC 309 fight against Weidman
From start to finish, a total of five UFC 309 fights were canceled or abandoned – with Eryk Anders' withdrawal from the event announced just a few hours before the pair were set to make the walk into Madison Square Garden.
“One bit of less good news: Due to a medical issue involving Eryk Anders, his middleweight prelim with Chris Weidman is now off,” Jon Anik from the commentary desk explained, while Joe Rogan called the situation “terrible” for the former champion.
“Urgh, that's too bad for Weidman, because you know, Weidman's comeback has been so brutal and so difficult. He has undergone thirty operations to get where he is now and for him the day of the fight to call it off is terrible. .”
Taking to Instagram late last night, Anders revealed he was forced to leave UFC 309 after coming down with a nasty case of food poisoning – which started to affect his preparation Friday night after the official weigh-in.
“Throwing up all Friday evening and Saturday morning… I feel much better today, awake and active – still feeling a bit weak.
“Status update: I got food poisoning on Friday night and there was no way I could have gone out to compete,” Anders continued in the caption of his post.
“Super angry that I couldn't compete against a former champion at MSG. I seriously doubt that opportunity will arise again, but it is what it is… Hopefully we can rebook that match as soon as possible. Thank you all for the concerned messages.”
Weidman himself would also come out to say he was “super disappointed” to have lost the opportunity to compete at Madison Square Garden on such a huge PPV card.
“I'm super disappointed, I felt so good for this fight, I was so ready, my head is spinning with this happening, I was about to walk to the arena, just said the prayers with my family.”
The former champion was quoted as saying he was 'gutted' at missing his MSG show as he wished Anders a speedy recovery, before apologizing to those who made the trip to New York.
“Yes, it just felt so good and I was so excited to do a show at Madison Square Garden, I'm so gutted… Anders – I hope he gets better soon, and I want to apologize to all the friends and family, fans who I spent a lot of money to come here and see me fight tonight… It really sucks.”
It's unlikely Anders vs Weidman will be rebooked for any of the final three events of 2024; Should the promotion wish to continue the fight for a PPV, the next available event on US soil will be UFC 313 on March 8, 2025.
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