Melsik Baghdasaryan out of UFC Saudi Arabia due to injury
Melsik Baghdasaryan won’t be fighting this weekend.
The featherweight competitor announced on his social media that he has been forced to withdraw from his fight against Muhammad Naimov, which was set to take place on the main card of UFC Saudi Arabia this Saturday in Riyadh.
According to Baghdasaryan, he suffered a torn labrum in his left shoulder. Watch his Instagram Stories announcement below (archived by Eurosport).
Melsik Baghdasaryan confirms he is out of his scheduled fight in Saudi Arabia against Muhammad Naimov. #UFCSaudiArabia
— Marcel Dorff (@BigMarcel24) June 17, 2024
Baghdasaryan IG Stories pic.twitter.com/5bErTE6lMP
The news of Baghdasaryan’s withdrawal was first reported by MMA reporter Robert Tellez.
It is not yet known if the UFC is seeking a new opponent for Naimov.
Baghdasaryan hasn’t had much luck making it to fight night in 2024. He has now missed out on three bookings this year, with fights against Hyder Amil and William Gomis also falling through. He has won three of his first four UFC fights, most recently defeating Tucker Lutz by unanimous decision in July 2023.
Saturday’s UFC Saudi Arabia card has already seen one major shakeup. The main event was to feature former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker taking on the undefeated Khamzat Chimaev, but Chimaev was forced to withdraw due to illness and has been replaced by Ikram Aliskerov.