UFC on Fuel TV 9 Update: Alexander Gustafsson Cut Spells Demise of Main Event

Initial reports by Sweden’s SVT Sport and MMA news site MMANYTT.se said that a cut over Alexander Gustafsson’s eye put Saturday’s UFC on Fuel TV 9 match-up with Gegard Mousasi in jeopardy.

A follow-up report by MMANYTT.se, however, has all but assured that the fight will not happen.

Swedish MMA Federation president George Sallfeldt told MMANYTT.se that three doctors, one in person and two examining photos, have determined that the cut Gustafsson suffered in one of his final sparring sessions will take weeks to heal.

Sallfeldt added that, even if the cut were to heal by Friday, letting someone go into a fight “with heavy scar tissue would not be an option.”

“It is very difficult to see that this will be medically approved on Friday,” said Sallfeldt, adding that Gustafsson wanted to go ahead with the fight, but “this is a medical decision and not up to Alexander himself.”

The bigger question now is how does the UFC handle the situation?

Gustafsson is the hometown hero in Stockholm, where the fight was to have taken place, and the UFC on Fuel TV 9 fight card itself is lacking in other bouts that are generally considered headline worthy.

With less than a week to go until fight time, it could also prove difficult to find a replacement fighter that is prepared and has the necessary documents in place to travel to Sweden and keep Mousasi on the card.

UFC officials had still not commented on the situation at the time of the latest updates from the Swedish MMA Federation.

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