Anderson Silva will not be able to participate in a UFC 198 fight with Uriah Hall due to abdominal pain that may require gallbladder surgery, UFC president Dana White confirmed to Yahoo Sports.
The fight was set to take place on Saturday in Silva's hometown of Curitiba, Brazil, on a card stacked top to bottom with Brazilian talent.
As of now UFC officials are trying to find an (extremely) short-notice opponent for Hall in order to keep the main card intact with five fights.
"No decisions have been made as we are exploring the possibility of a new opponent for Hall," officials told Damon Martin of FOX Sports.
The abdominal issue will keep Silva from his second fight in three months since a year-long, performance-enhancing drug suspension kept him out for most of 2015.
"Anderson developed abdominal discomfort (Monday and) further evaluation today is consistent with acute cholecystitis," UFC medical consultant Jeff Davidson told Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports on Tuesday. "He will be seen by a surgeon today for possible surgery."
The loss of a Brazilian legend is a big blow to the card, but Fabricio Werdum will still put his heavyweight title on the line against Stipe Miocic in the main event.
