John Lineker is out of his UFC Greenville rematch with Rob Font due to undisclosed reasons, according to a report by MMA Junkie.
This is the fourth time Lineker has withdrawn from a bout since 2016. The Brazilian also pulled out from scheduled fights with Cody Garbrandt (illness), Jimmie Rivera (infection) and Cory Sandhagen (rib injury), who he later fought at UFC Sunrise in April this year.
Font, who is 3-2 in his last five fights, was initially booked to face Cody Stamann, but the Michigan Top Team fighter was forced to withdraw following an injury. Stamann’s injury allowed Lineker to step in on just 17 days notice. Font and Lineker previously met at UFC 198 in 2016, where Lineker was victorious by way of unanimous decision with judges scoring the bout 30-27, 29-28 and 30-26.
It is currently unconfirmed whether Lineker will be replaced, or if the bout will be scrapped entirely. There is another bantamweight bout on the card, with Andre Ewell (14-5) taking on Anderson Dos Santos (20-7), but it is unlikely that the UFC would be interested in booking Font, who is currently ranked #12 in the division, against either Ewell or Dos Santos, who have a combined record of 1-2 in the UFC.
Instead, the UFC will likely move another fight into the co-main event slot, and there are several bouts that seem like good fits. In particular, Bryan Barberena vs. Randy Brown at welterweight and Andrea Lee vs. Montana De La Rosa both could slide into the co-main event position.
UFC Greenville takes place at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in South Carolina this Saturday, June 22, and features the highly-anticipated featherweight clash between Renato Moicano and Chan Sung Jung. Both men suffered similarly devastating losses in their last bouts, Moicano against Jose Aldo at UFC Fortaleza and ‘The Korean Zombie’ against Yair Rodriguez, in a finish that many saw as the ‘Knockout of the Year’.