UFC Mexico City in Search of New Headliner After Asu Almabayev Injury

Asu Almabayev withdrew from the UFC Mexico City headliner a little more than three weeks before the event after suffering a hand injury. The Kazakh flyweight confirmed the setback on Instagram, aligning with an Ag. Fight report about his removal from a proposed bout with Brandon Moreno. It remains unclear whether Moreno will stay on the Feb. 28 card with a replacement opponent at Arena CDMX.Almabayev said he injured his hand two days before travel and noted he has five fights remaining on his UFC deal after a contract extension. He is 6-1 in the Octagon, 23-3 since 2013, and closed 2025 with wins over Jose Ochoa and Alex Perez. Moreno's outing was a second-round TKO loss to Tatsuro Taira at UFC 325.