Karl Roberson pulled from UFC Jacksonville due to ‘medical issues unrelated to COVID-19’

Karl Roberson was removed from Wednesday night’s middleweight bout with Marvin Vettori. | Esther Lin, MMA Fighting

UFC Jacksonville will proceed with 10 bouts after middleweight Karl Roberson was forced out of Wednesday night’s event due to medical issues, the company announced.

The news was first reported by ESPN.

Roberson was scheduled to face Marvin Vettori at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Florida, but fell ill “after his weight cut.”

The middleweights were originally paired up for UFC’s Fight Night show on April 25, but the event was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

UFC Jacksonville airs live on ESPN+ and features a light heavyweight showdown between Anthony Smith and Glover Teixeira in the main event.

The company hasn’t announced which bout will be moved to the main card.

Main card (ESPN+ at 9 p.m. ET)

Anthony Smith vs. Glover Teixeira
Ben Rothwell vs. Ovince Saint Preux
Alexander Hernandez vs. Drew Dober
Ricky Simon vs. Ray Borg
Karl Roberson vs. Marvin Vettori — cancelled

Prelims (ESPN+ at 6 p.m. ET)

Andrei Arlovski vs. Philipe Lins
Michael Johnson vs. Thiago Moises
Sijara Eubanks vs. Sarah Moras
Gabriel Benitez vs. Omar Morales
Hunter Azure vs. Brian Kelleher
Chase Sherman vs. Ike Villanueva