Henry Cejudo withdraws from Merab Dvalishvili bout due to injury at RAF08

Henry Cejudo has withdrawn from his scheduled bantamweight main event against Merab Dvalishvili at RAF08 in Philadelphia due to an injury, according to a report citing RealAmericanFreestyle. No details about the nature or severity of the injury were disclosed. As a result, Arman Tsarukyan and Urijah Faber have been elevated to headline the card.

Cejudo, 39, carries a 16-6 record and sits ninth in the bantamweight division. The former two-division champion known as Triple C stands five-foot-four with a 64-inch reach and lands 3.82 significant strikes per minute at 47 percent accuracy. He also averages 1.84 takedowns per 15 minutes, a figure that reflected his decorated wrestling background.

Dvalishvili, 35, is the top-ranked bantamweight in the world and sits second in the pound-for-pound rankings with a 21-5 record. The Georgian fighter out of Serra-Longo is one of the division's most relentless pressers, averaging a remarkable 6.4 takedowns per 15 minutes and 4.33 significant strikes per minute. He stood as the most formidable test available at 135 pounds.

Stepping into the new main event, Urijah Faber is a 47-year-old American veteran with a 35-11 record. The California Kid trains out of Team Alpha Male and carries a 67-inch reach. He averages 0.8 submission attempts per 15 minutes, a nod to a career built heavily around grappling and finishing ability.

Why it matters

• Cejudo's withdrawal removes a high-profile bantamweight matchup that carried significant ranking implications for the division's number-nine contender.
• Dvalishvili, the top-ranked bantamweight, is left without an opponent and will likely need a rescheduled date to stay active.
• The replacement main event shifts the card's competitive weight considerably, bringing Faber back into a headline slot at age 47.