Al Iaquinta has pulled out of the fight with Justin Gaethje in August’s UFC Fight Night 135 headliner. Al told ESPN that the fight is not happening and James Vick has stepped up as a replacement opponent.
The UFC or Al hadn’t initially confirmed the news. Damon Martin spoke to Justin’s manager Ali Abdelaziz and he responded by saying that, “Nothing but love for Al. Al is going to be Al. I like Al very much. Doesn’t matter who is going to fight Justin Gaethje, they could put a chair in there against him and it’s going to be exciting.”
Al last fought Khabib Nurmagomedov for the lightweight title at UFC 223 as the last minute replacement for Tony Ferguson, which he lost via unanimous decision. Before the Khabib fight, he was on a five-fight win streak.
Justin, on the other hand, has lost his last two against Dustin Poirier and Eddie Alvarez and this is his 3rd consecutive main event. Justin currently has 18 wins and two losses on his professional record and is always ready to fight anybody anywhere. He faced a lot of flak for his stand and bang style to which he has responded saying he knows what he’s doing.
Justin earlier replied to a post on twitter claiming Al Iaquinta chickened out of the fight and Al didn’t take this kindly and came back with a scathing tweet aimed at Gaethje.
You know he will bitch out. Buy the tickets, I am fighting somebody!
— Justin Gaethje ?? (@Justin_Gaethje) June 28, 2018
You’re the bitch you’ll fight anyone for anything. Brain dead and broke in 2 years
— Al Iaquinta? (@ALIAQUINTA) June 28, 2018
Here are the UFC Lincoln fights on tap so far:
- Justin Gaethje vs. James Vick
- Angela Hill vs. Alexa
- GrassoDeiveson Figueiredo vs. John Moraga
- Antonio Braga Neto vs. Andrew Sanchez
- Eryk Anders vs. Tim Williams
- Drew Dober vs. Jon TuckLuke Sanders vs. Rani Yahya
Why do you think Al Iaquinta pulled out of his fight with Justin Gaethje?
