• UFC Sweden

White: Gustafsson yet to be told he can't fight

ESPN staff
April 1, 2013
Alexander Gustafsson has suffered a facial laceration © Getty Images
Enlarge

UFC president Dana White has delivered an update on Alexander Gustafsson's injury situation, insisting the Swede is not out of Saturday's main event yet.

News emerged late on Sunday that Gustafsson had suffered a large cut above one of his eyes. It was claimed that it was 99 per cent certain he would not be able to fight in Stockholm.

However, White claims that the fight remains on for now, with Gustafsson keen to compete if he can get medical clearance.

"The [Swedish Mixed Martial Arts Federation] has not said he can't fight, and he wants to fight," White told MMA Fighting.

Gustafsson is scheduled to headline the UFC Sweden card against Gegard Mousasi in a highly significant 205lb bout. If he wins, he joins Lyoto Machida in vying for a meeting against the winner of Jon Jones v Chael Sonnen.

Ultimately his availability for the April 6 card will likely be determined by his pre-fight medical, which will focus on the scar tissue over the eye.

Should Gustafsson be unable to fight, the UFC would be left with less than a week to find a replacement. The other option is to pull both fighters from the card, leaving Ross Pearson's lightweight battle with Ryan Couture as the headliner.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
Close

ABOUT COOKIES

To help make this website better, to improve and personalize your experience and for advertising purposes, are you happy to accept cookies and other technologies.

More Info Here Cookie Choices