Alexander Gustafsson discusses “crazy” events that led to UFC 227 exit

For a brief period, two-time UFC light heavyweight title challenger Alexander Gustafsson was expected to return to the cage at UFC 227 on August 4. Unfortunately, that plan did not work out.

First, Gustafsson’s planned opponent Volkan Oezdemir withdrew from their fight an injury. Then, shortly after he was called out by rising contenders Khalil Rountree and Anthony Sith, Gustafsson was forced off the card with an injury of his own.

Speaking on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show on ESPN on Monday, Alexander Gustafsson shared his reaction to the frustrating series of events that resulted in his withdrawal from the card.

“Well I can tell that I’ve been very frustrated, these couple of days,” Gustafsson said. “It doesn’t go my way, really. It’s just crazy.”

“It’s just a minor injury,” Gustafsson continued, elaborating on the injury that forced him off the card. “It’s nothing to talk about really. It’s just a [expletive] thing, and it gets on my nerves. But it is was it is. I’m here now, and I’ll do everything in my power to bounce back, and I will in a couple of weeks.”

Alexander Gustafsson continued:

“It’s been frustrating. I don’t know what’s going on. I feel like I don’t have any flow right now. It’s just [expletive] crazy, I’m telling you, I’m so frustrated because this was my card, this was my fight, then Volkan fell off. It was a fight that really motivated me, to fight Volkan. It’s the best fight for me, and it makes the most sense. I felt great fighting him. Then he got injured, and you know, it is what it is. [Expletive] happens.”

“I’m in the best shape of my life, and then I got injured. I get injured from nowhere. It’s just crazy, that’s all I can say to you.”

Here’s hoping Alexander Gustafsson makes a speedy recovery and gets himself back in the mix soon.

This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 7/23/2018.