Ray Borg Reacts To Disappointing UFC 215 Withdrawal
Late last night (or very early in the morning, depending on where you live), this weekend’s (Sat., September 9, 2017) UFC 215 from Edmonton, Alberta, was dealt a shocking strike when flyweight title challenger Ray Borg pulled out of his main event title bout against Demetrious Johnson with an illness.
Borg, who has a history of not making the division’s 125-pound limit, was deemed unfit to fight by the UFC’s medical team of doctors due to a viral illness he said was not weight related. This evening, Borg released his first statement to MMA Weekly apologizing to his fans and thanking the UFC:
“First, I want to say I’m sorry to the fans and to Demetrious Johnson for being unable to fight,” Borg said in the statement. “I want to say thank you to Dr. Davidson, the UFC and to Jeff Novitzky for looking out for my health and best interests.
“I also want to add that I am no longer working with Perfecting Athletes and Michelle Ingels, who was not authorized to speak on my behalf.”
Borg was preparing to fight for his UFC championship in a bout that had potential to be historic, but not exactly in his favor. ”Mighty Mouse’ was preparing to break his tie with all-time great middleweight champion Anderson Silva for the most consecutive title defenses in UFC history, of which he would hold 11 straight if he beat Borg as most expected him to.
The UFC is considering rebooking his fight with Johnson in the coming months, but many have called out for rising young contender Sergio Pettis to get the title shot instead.
