Stephen Thompson vs. Michel Pereira removed from UFC 291 due to brutal weight miss

UFC welterweight contenders Stephen Thompson and Michel Pereira have now been removed from tomorrow’s event.

The fight between the two was slated to be the biggest of the Brazilian’s career to date. Entering UFC 291, Michel Pereira was riding a five-fight winning streak. With victories over names such as Santiago Ponzibbio and Niko Price in that stretch, Saturday’s fight with Stephen Thompson was a big one.

For his part, ‘Wonderboy’ is fresh off his stoppage victory over Kevin Holland in December. The former title challenger was hopeful that the momentum would carry into UFC 291, but that sadly won’t be the case. Earlier today, the Brazilian badly missed weight for the welterweight contest.

While Stephen Thompson came in at the welterweight contest, Michel Pereira sadly did not. At UFC 291 weigh-ins this morning, the welterweight contender came in three pounds over the limit. Furthermore, he didn’t exactly seem to be in great spirits on the scale either.

RELATED: ISRAEL ADESANYA SHARES HIS PREDICTION FOR UFC 291 CO-MAIN EVENT BETWEEN ALEX PEREIRA AND JAN BLACHOWICZ

Image Credit: UFC.com

For hours, there was a debate on if the contest would proceed. However, Megan Olivi announced at UFC 291 ceremonial weigh-ins, the fight between Stephen Thompson and Michel Pereira is now off. Due to the dropped fight, the card is now down to ten fights. As of now, it’s unclear what fight will instead move to the pay-per-view portion of the event.

Obviously, the loss of Stephen Thompson vs. Michel Pereira is a big one for the pay-per-view card. That being said, the rest of the UFC 291 is excellent, being headlined by the long-awaited rematch between Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje. In the co-main event, former middleweight champion Alex Pereira moves to light-heavyweight to face fellow contender, Jan Blachowicz.

What do you make of this news? Are you excited for UFC 291 tomorrow night?