“My Boy Zhalgas Doesn’t Deserve Any of This”- MMA Fans Agonized With the Cancellation of Zhalgas Zhumagulov and Rafael Estevam Fight at ‘Cursed’ UFC 288

Another fight has been scratched out of the UFC 288 fight card. The UFC’s New Jersey fight card hit another disappointment as the promotion dropped the fight from the card, derailing Rafael Estevam’s UFC debut against Zhalgas Zhumagulov on May 6, 2023, at the Prudential Center.

The heartbreaking announcement came during Friday’s official weigh-ins as the fight involving Zhumagulov was off. The PPV, already marred with pullouts and injuries, is looking bare thin as three fights earlier met the same fate. Previously, a bantamweight clash between Daniel Santos and Johnny Munoz Jr. also suffered a hit after Santos withdrew, citing an undisclosed injury.

Zhalgas Zhumagulov and the fault in his stars

The Kazakh fighter, who stirred headlines with a new hairstyle coming into the fight week, was left stranded after Estevam’s pullback. This also halted the 34-year-old fighter’s plans to rebound, who had a rough go of things in recent years.

‘Zhako’ is coming off a 3-loss streak, with his two recent outings churning out two split-decision losses. These two heartbreaking losses moved him to 1-5 in his last 6 fights, a stat the fighter wanted to improve but was robbed of the opportunity. Meanwhile, Estevam now has to wait again to mark his debut after earning a UFC contract on Dana White’s Contender Series past September. While he had an opportunity to grace the Octagon in April against Carlos Candelario, an injury to Candelario hindered his debut.

Notably, UFC president Dana White recently announced the fight between Bryce Mitchell and Movsar Evloev also hit a snag after Mitchell dropped out with a shoulder injury. However, newcomer Diego Lopes stepped in on short notice to face the undefeated Evloev. The unfortunate series of events started when the co-main event of Charles Oliveira and Beneil Dariush received a new booking at UFC 289. Reportedly, ‘do Bronx’ suffered an undisclosed injury, and a potential title contender eliminator moved to Vancouver.

How did the fans react to another fight cancellation at UFC 288?

The fans expressed their frustration after another cancellation took place and a few labeled the UFC 288 as a cursed card. Further, they rallied their support for Zhumagulo, who was left without an opponent, mere hours away from PPVs.

Read More: “Dana Needs to Do Something” – Hours After Main Event Falls off Due to “Broken Ribs,” 2 More Cancellations From UFC 288 & 289 Stuns Fans

The fans asked how many cancellations they had seen and whether the card was cursed.

A series of tweets mentioned how sorry they felt about Zhumagulov not fighting.

A fan demanded a fight for Zhumagulo.

Despite this reshuffling, the headliner consisting of Aljamain Sterling and Henry Cejudo was intact for the bantamweight title. In addition, the promotion found another high-voltage match in replacement as a co-main event by Gilbert Burns and Belal Muhammad.

What do you think of the recent development related to UFC 288? Do you believe Zhalgas Zhumagulov will bounce back in his next fight? Let us know in the comments below.

Watch This Story–Alexander Volkanovski’s coach reveals a depressing incident that almost led to the retirement of the great