Brunno Ferreira needs a new opponent for UFC Vegas 96 after Roman Kopylov withdrew due to appendicitis surgery, with Abdul Razak Alhassan potentially stepping in as a replacement.
Brunno Ferreira needs a new opponent for UFC Vegas 96. Roman Kopylov withdrew from the Aug. 24 card after having appendicitis surgery.
Multiple people with knowledge of the situation confirmed this to MMA Fighting. Ferreira first announced the news on social media.
Kopylov is expected to be out of action until later in the year as he recovers from surgery. UFC has yet to officially announce Kopylov’s withdrawal or name a potential replacement for Ferreira at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas.
The Brazilian middleweight told Sherdog that Abdul Razak Alhassan might step in as a replacement. “My fight with Roman Kopylov is off, to many people’s delight,” Ferreira said in an Instagram video.
“When I say that Russians don’t want to fight me, that’s the absolute truth,” he continued. “This is the second time already.”
Ferreira added, “If they’re so good in grappling, why won’t they fight me? Shara [Magomedov] only fights on the feet, and now Roman Kopylov is the same thing.”
“They only fight on the feet and they know I’m trouble on the ground and have knockout power too.”
Ferreira, who boasts a professional record of 12-1, scored back-to-back bonus-winning stoppages over Phil Hawes and Dustin Stoltzfus in 2024. This boosted his UFC record to 3-1.
All his promotional wins have come via first-round knockouts. “Hulk” was scheduled to face Alhassan in 2023 but Alhassan ultimately withdrew from that bout.
Damon Martin contributed to this report