UFC Fight Night 121: Mark Hunt out of UFC event in Australia. Fabricio Werdum steps in as replacement.

UFC event in Sydney Australia on November will press on without Mark Hunt as the biggest MMA organization have handled their decision to not let the heavyweight brawler to compete due to what they’ve called “medical concerns”.

A few weeks back, Mark Hunt (13-11-1) had admitted on having issues with his health. In his column, he claimed that he suffers from a short memory loss, difficulty in speech, a symptom of brain damage but still have desire to continue his fighting career.

“My body is fucked but my mind is still here. I’ve still got my senses about me and I know what’s right and wrong, which is the main thing. Sometimes I don’t sleep well. You can hear me starting to stutter and slur my words. My memory is not that good anymore. I’ll forget something I did yesterday but I can remember the shit I did years and years ago. That’s just the price I’ve paid – the price of being a fighter. But I’ve fought a lot of drug cheats and copped a lot of punishment from guys who were cheating and that’s not right.” – Mark Hunt

THE PRICE OF SUCCESS: Mark Hunt suffers symptoms of brain damage after lengthy stint in combat sports

But for Dana White and the organization, this isn’t just a minor case of health problem, so, they’ll be taking serious action regarding Mark Hunt’s condition.

For now, Hunt isn’t allowed to get involved in any fighting event until further notice. He is ordered to take some series of medical tests including brain examination to be conducted by UFC physicians.

“The health-related statements made by Hunt in the article represent the first time UFC was made aware of these claims. Athlete health and safety is of the utmost importance to the organization and it would never knowingly schedule an athlete complaining of health issues for a fight. The organization will require that Hunt undergo further testing and evaluations prior to competing in any future UFC bout.” – UFC statement

Kudos for the UFC organization for handling the right verdict.

We’ve seen a lot of skilled fighters who got hurt during the event, but a brain injury is way different and a more serious situation amongst other injuries.

Fabricio Werdum (22-7) will step in to replace Mark Hunt to face Marcin Tybura (16-2) at UFC Fight Night 121 in Sydney Australia this November.

The Brazilian 2^nd degree BJJ black belter just came from a 65 second win against Walt Harris (short notice) via armbar during the UFC216 event this past weekend.