Major Change Announced for UFC 292 After Main Card Fighter Withdraws

A new opponent is stepping in on short notice after one fighter withdrew from UFC 292.

Drew Beaupré | Aug 10, 2023

Major Change Announced for UFC 292 After Main Card Fighter Withdraws /

Ian Machado Garry will now meet Neil Magny at UFC 292 after his original opponent Geoff Neal was forced to pull out less than two weeks before the event.

The welterweight matchup between Garry and Neal was one of the most interesting bouts scheduled for UFC 292, and “The Future” added a bit of extra intrigue to the fight when he was pictured wearing a T-shirt with Neal’s mugshot on it.

News broke on Wednesday night that “Handz of Steel” had been forced to withdraw from the event for undisclosed medical reasons, but luckily Magny was willing to step up on short notice to meet Garry in Boston on August 19.

G.Neal out. Neil Magny will now fight Ian Machado Garry at #UFC292 on August 19th. (first rep. @iangarryMMA) #UFC #MMA #UFCESPN #UFC2023 #UFCBoston pic.twitter.com/1i4TzLUO9A
— Marcel Dorff 🇳🇱🇮🇩 (@BigMarcel24) August 10, 2023

The new matchup won’t give the #13-ranked Garry as significant an opportunity to move towards a welterweight title shot as he would have had against the #8-ranked Neal, but Magny is still two spots ahead of the Irishman and should provide a strong test for the unbeaten fighter.

“The Future” has stormed through the UFC’s welterweight rankings since joining the promotion in 2021 and most recently stopped Daniel Rodriguez in the first round, while Magny just got back into the win column when he won a split decision over Phil Rowe in May.

Losing a rising star like Garry would have been a significant blow to UFC 292, however the new matchup with Magny is an excellent replacement fight that will take place as part of the main card leading up to Weili Zhang's strawweight title defense against Amanda Lemos and the bantamweight title bout between Aljamain Sterling and Sean O’Malley.

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Published Aug 10, 2023