Kai Kara-France won’t get the chance to fight at home after all.
The one-time interim flyweight title challenger revealed Thursday that he won’t be able to compete at UFC 284 in Perth, Australia, due to an injury that has forced him out of his scheduled matchup against Alex Perez on Feb. 11.
“Unfortunately due to injury, I’ve had to pull out of my upcoming fight in Perth,” Kara-France wrote on Instagram. “I’m gutted I won’t be able to fight in front of everyone in Australia.
“To everyone who supports me, I’m sorry. This has been frustrating but I know I’m making the right decision. Hopefully me and Alex Perez can run it back next year. Enjoy the holidays and stay safe. Will see you back in the Octagon 2023. Much love everyone!”
There’s no word yet if Perez will remain on the card against a new opponent or get bumped to a later date.
Kara-France dropping off the card is the second major hit UFC 284 has taken this week with another local fighter being forced out of the event.
On Monday, ex-UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker was also pulled from the card after his bout against Paulo Costa was cancelled. Costa never actually agreed to the fight under the terms of his current contract and he couldn’t come to terms with the UFC on a new deal.
As a result, the fight was scrapped, with Whittaker adding that the UFC was hoping to re-book him for a new matchup in either March or April.
There will still be plenty of local talent on the card in February, including reigning UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski competing in the main event against lightweight king Islam Makhachev.
