UFC 279 main card shuffled as Chimaev fails to make weight

One day before the scheduled pay-per-view event, the top three fights on the UFC 279 card have been totally rearranged, according to UFC president Dana White, who made the announcement in a live Instagram video on Friday. The UFC 279 main card featured a new main event on Saturday after one of the most chaotic weigh-ins in recent UFC history.

Tony Ferguson will now compete against Nate Diaz in the Saturday night's main event at T-Mobile Arena. Khamzat Chimaev, Diaz's initial challenger, failed to make weight on Friday morning and weighed in at 178.5 pounds instead of the 171 pounds allowed for the contest. It makes sense that Diaz decided against fighting such a heavy opponent.

Despite the severe financial repercussions of his error, Chimaev will continue on the card to compete against Holland at a catch weight of 180 pounds. Chimaev and Holland engaged in a physical altercation on Thursday before the UFC 279 press conference, which led the organization to cancel the event. The co main event between Chimaev and Holland will also be five rounds.

Rodriguez will now face Li, who weighed 170.5 pounds on Friday. Rodriguez weighed 179 pounds, therefore there will be a significant weight difference. Additional weight changes were made to the card by the UFC. The fight between Macy Chiasson and Irene Aldana at bantamweight is now a 140-pound catchweight contest.

Hakeem Dawodu, a featherweight, and Chris Barnett, a heavyweight, both failed to make weight for UFC 279, although they will still compete in their scheduled matches. Dawodu will forfeit 30% of his winnings to rival Julian Erosa, while Barnett loses 20% to Jake Collier.

The events leading to UFC 279 was nothing short of drama when the fight week started. From altercations between Paulo Costa and Khamzat Chimaev at UFC PI to cancellation of the press conference due to a backstage brawl between different fighters to Chimaev missing weight badly. It has been all box office for the organization. Majority of the fans are more excited with the shuffled card as compared to the initial one. Now it's up to the fighters to put an end to a dramatic week by putting their best performances inside the octagon come Saturday night.