Perez misses weight, UFC 271 bout vs. Schnell canceled for 4th time

It happened again.

Alex Perez and Matt Schnell won't square off at UFC 271 on Saturday after Perez missed weight by two pounds and Schnell declined the fight, the promotion announced Friday.

This was the fourth time a matchup between the two flyweight contenders has been canceled.

Perez and Schnell were scheduled to fight three times in 2021, including in December when Perez missed weight and Schnell was later ruled out of the bout due to a medical issue.

Perez also withdrew from a May fight against Schnell before their September booking was pushed back by three months for unknown reasons.

Schnell last competed in May, losing to Rogerio Bontorin by unanimous decision. Meanwhile, Perez hasn't stepped into the Octagon since he challenged Deiveson Figueiredo for the flyweight title in November 2020.

UFC 271, headlined by a middleweight title bout between Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker, will proceed with 14 contests at Toyota Center in Houston.