Nikolas Motta withdrew from UFC 287 after suffering a deep gash due to an accidental headbutt during practice.
Nikolas Motta had a legitimate reason for withdrawing from UFC 287. The 30-year-old veteran of the UFC’s Contender Series was scheduled to face Ignacio Bahamondes on April 8 in a lightweight bout on UFC 287’s undercard. Unfortunately, Motta was forced to pull out from the match due to a deep gash he suffered from an accidental headbutt during practice.
Motta shared a statement explaining the incident and the reasoning behind his withdrawal. He said, “Don’t swipe left if you have a weak stomach. I had this accident couple days by a headbutt in wrestling practice and my coaches and people that I trust made the decision to ask to pull back my fight 3 weeks to have enough time to heal this or it would easily open in the fight and they would stop the fight by doctor stoppage. I had a lot stitches all my career but never had one deep like that, this white part on my cut in the second picture is my tendon, it got very swollen and inflamed.” He continued, “So even if I felt unbelievable that something like that happened right before my fight, after thinking a lot I could see that was the right choice from my coach that I trust.”
Motta (13-4) has a 1-1 record over two UFC appearances. After winning a decision over Joseph Lowry on Contender Series, he lost his octagon debut via second-round TKO to Jim Miller before bouncing back with a first-round TKO of Cameron VanCamp. Currently, it is unclear whether a replacement opponent will be found to keep Bahamondes on the card. UFC 287 is set to take place at the Miami-Dade Arena in Miami, Florida.