UFC 303 Updated Fight Card After Conor McGregor Pulls Out Of Main Event vs Michael Chandler

UFC 303 fight card has gone through major changes just weeks ahead of the International Fight Week event in Las Vegas after Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler main event was cancelled.

Former double champion McGregor was all set to make his much-awaited return to the Octagon for the first time since he lost to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 in July 2021.

But the former featherweight and lightweight champ McGregor was forced to withdraw from the originally scheduled June 29th headliner against Chandler at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas due to injury.

McGregor was slated to face Chandler last year after coaching their respective teams in The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 31: Team McGregor vs. Team Chandler, which aired from May 30 to August 15, 2023.

However, the fight was delayed due to McGregor recovering from a leg break he suffered in the fight against Poirier, and now his fight against Chandler has been cancelled again.

When there was a lot of chaos around the upcoming event, it was announced that light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira will step in for a title defense against rival Jiri Prochazka in the new main event of UFC 303. Pereira had defeated Prochazka at UFC 295 to claim a vacant 205-pound belt.

A new co-main event also had to be booked after Jamahal Hill withdrew from his fight against Carlos Ulberg due to a knee injury with featherweight contenders Brian Ortega and Diego Lopes have stepping in to take the spot.

Ulberg still remains on the card and will face Anthony Smith in a light heavyweight bout. UFC CEO Dana White shared an image of the updated lineup for UFC 303 via his social media handles earlier in the week. Here is a look at the UFC 303 updated Fight Card:

UFC 303 Fight Card

• UFC Light Heavyweight Championship Bout: Alex Pereira (c) vs. Jiri Prochazka
• Featherweight Bout: Brian Ortega vs. Diego Lopes
• Light Heavyweight Bout: Anthony Smith vs. Carlos Ulberg
• Women's Bantamweight Bout: Mayra Bueno Silva vs. Macy Chiasson
• Welterweight Bout: Ian Machado Garry vs. Michael Page
• Middleweight Bout: Joe Pyfer vs. Marc-Andre Barriault
• Featherweight Bout: Cub Swanson vs. Andre Fili
• Featherweight Bout: Charles Jourdain vs. Jean Silva
• Bantamweight Bout: Payton Talbott vs. Yanis Ghemmouri
• Women's Strawweight Bout: Michelle Waterson-Gomez vs. Gillian Robertson
• Heavyweight Bout: Andrei Arlovski vs. Martin Buday
• Flyweight Bout: Rei Tsuruya vs. Carlos Hernandez
• Bantamweight Bout: Ricky Simon vs. Vinicius Oliveira