Strickland out of Fight Night headliner vs. Cannonier
Sean Strickland is out of his UFC Fight Night main event against Jared Cannonier, UFC president Dana White said, according to Nolan King of USA Today.
The middleweight clash was scheduled for Oct. 15 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
The news comes days after Strickland announced on Instagram that he needs surgery due to a finger infection. The 31-year-old said he'd be out for three weeks.
"I had a hard spar on Thursday; I woke up on Friday and was like, 'Hey, you know what? My finger is a little sore.' Then throughout the day, I was like, 'My finger is f-----.' So I went to the hospital, and it turns out I have a really bad infection from a tooth," he said.
"They're going to cut me open and drain it out. ... I'm gonna be out for like three weeks."
Strickland saw his six-fight winning streak end in July against Alex Pereira at UFC 276. He's currently the No. 7-ranked middleweight.
Cannonier, who owns the No. 2 spot in the division, is coming off a loss to Israel Adesanya at UFC 276. The 38-year-old had won five of his previous six bouts before running into Adesanya.