UFC 297: Jan Blachowicz Out, Alexandar Rakic Calls Out Prochazka
Jan Blachowicz has pulled out of his bout against Alexandar Rakic at UFC 297 PPV next month.
Blachowicz and Rakic were supposed to clash in a key light heavyweight bout. However, Rakic tweeted on Thursday that Blachowicz has pulled out of the bout.
Rakic posted, “you can never lose a rematch when you pull out for the second time.” It seems that Blachowicz has suffered an injury, but details are not present at this moment.
Rakic and Blachowicz first fought in May 2022 to headline UFC Vegas 54 event. That fight was also postponed from March 2022 after Blachowicz pulled out due to a neck injury.
When the fight was rebooked in May, Blachowicz came out on the winning side after Rakic suffered an ACL injury in the third round. Rakic also revealed that he suffered a knee injury three weeks before that fight during sparring. All 3 scorecards were reading 19-19 when the fight was stopped.
Rakic is not seen in the octagon since that fight due to the injury and a rematch against Blachowicz was supposed to be his comeback. Rakic has now called out “The Czech Samurai” Jiri Prochazka to step up and fight him.
Prochazka fought at UFC 295 event last month where he lost UFC Light Heavyweight Championship bout to Alex Pereira via knockout.
UFC 297 is set to take place on January 20, 2024, in Toronto, Canada. Another light heavyweight fight that was announced for the event was between Dominik Reyes and Carlos Ulberg.
