Joseph Duffy is out of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 76 main event in Dublin, suffering a concussion in training this week.
The UFC revealed his removal from the event on Wednesday afternoon, and the main event will now be a three round bout between Patrick Holohan and Louis Smolka. The card airs live on UFC Fight Pass in North America.
Here’s the statement from the UFC on the blow to the scheduled headliner:
“Due to a medical issue involving UFC lightweight Joe Duffy, the new main event of UFC FIGHT NIGHT in Ireland on Saturday will be a three-round bout featuring hometown hero Paddy Holohan vs. Louis Smolka.
“Having learned that Duffy received a strike to the head during training earlier this week, UFC sent him for medical tests in Ireland for precautionary purposes. The results determined that Duffy suffered a mild concussion and due to the proximity of the fight this Saturday UFC will not permit him to compete. The health and safety of UFC athletes will continue to be the top priority for the organization. As such, UFC has respected standard athletic commission regulations, which recommend a medical suspension from competition as a result of the concussion.
“Duffy’s original opponent, Dustin Poirier, will be rescheduled for another event. Fans seeking ticket refunds as a result of the main event changes can do so through Ticketmaster at the point of purchase.”
Penick’s Analysis: That’s an awful, awful blow to this card, which had already lost its planned co-main event between Stipe Miocic and Ben Rothwell due to injury. I’d imagine lots of fans will be getting refunds and hoping the UFC comes back stronger next year. Give the UFC credit here for pulling Duffy despite the harm it’s going to cause the card itself. Knowing about the concussion, they would have had no business putting him in the cage. Hopefully he recovers soon and this isn’t too big of a setback, but it’s a massively disappointing situation all around.
I’m gutted for Duffy, but absolutely loving that the UFC continues to get caught with their pants down whenever they make a card so thin. This happens time and time again, and there’s no excuse for it.