One of the more interesting preliminary fights on the UFC 264 card next month is off.
Kevin Lee has suffered a rib injury and is out of a scheduled welterweight matchup with up-and-comer Sean Brady on July 10 in Las Vegas, Lee told ESPN on Thursday.
Lee said he is taking some time to heal and is targeting the fight with Brady to be rebooked for UFC 265 on Aug. 7.
Brady posted about the cancellation on Instagram, saying his team also hopes to reschedule the fight for August.
Lee (18-6) is coming off surgery to the ACL in his right knee. The 28-year-old has not fought since a third-round loss to lightweight champion Charles Oliveira in March 2020. The Michigan native, who fights out of Las Vegas, has dropped four of six fights, but all the losses came to top contenders.
A former interim lightweight title challenger, Lee is moving up to welterweight for this fight.
Brady (14-0) is one of the top prospects in the welterweight division. The Philadelphia native is 4-0 in UFC, with his last two victories coming via submission finish. Brady, 28, is the former Cage Fury Fighting Championship welterweight champion.
UFC 264 is headlined by the trilogy bout between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier. In the co-main event, welterweight contenders Gilbert Burns and Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson will collide.