Islam Makhachev Receives Bobby Green as Short-Notice Replacement After Beneil Dariush Pulls Out of Their Title Eliminator Bout

Beneil Dariush and Islam Makhachev were supposed to scrap it out in the octagon on February 26. However, Dariush withdrew because he suffered an ankle injury during his training sessions.

This unfortunate incident jeopardized the Fight Night event, but the UFC has quickly gotten things back on track with Bobby Green set to replace the #3 ranked UFC lightweight.

ESPN’s correspondent Brett Okamoto confirmed this with his tweet-.

“Per sources, Bobby Green (@BobbyKGreen) vs. Islam Makhachev (@MAKHACHEVMMA) will be contested at 160 pound catchweight. Main event, Feb. 26. Five rounds.”

Green’s first UFC main event will be a short notice catchweight bout (160-pounds).

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‘King’ Green (29-12-1) is on a two-fight winning streak. He defeated former title challenger Al Iaquinta via TKO at UFC 268 and followed that up with a decision win over Nasrat Haqparast at UFC 271: Adesanya vs. Whittaker 2.

If the unranked lightweight wants to win three in a row, he will have to overcome one of his biggest challenges in the form of the #4 UFC lightweight.

Why did Bobby Green need to replace Beneil Dariush?

Beneil Dariush is one of the most impressive fighters on the lightweight roster. The Iranian-American sustained an injury whilst training for the much-anticipated fight against Islam Makhachev. According to reports, the injury occurred while Dariush’s training partner went for a takedown against him on the mats.

One of Dariush’s training partners, UFC middleweight Marvin Vettori, also confirmed the severe injury via his Twitter handle.

‘The Italian Dream’ tweeted, “For everybody talking sh*t, bennys leg has a serious injury, there wasn’t anything he wanted more than this fight. 20 ufc fights, fought pretty much everyone, one of the most active in the roster. Wash your mouth whenever you talk about him.” 

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What are your thoughts on the replacement? Should Makhachev have opted to wait for a ranked opponent? Will the UFC still look at this bout as a virtual title eliminator? Let us know in the comments below.