ANAHEIM, CA - JULY 28: (L-R) Renato Moicano of Brazil and Brian Ortega face off during the UFC 214 weigh-in inside the Honda Center on July 28, 2017 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images) | Zuffa LLC via Getty Images Canceled AGAIN. The long-awaited, heated rematch between Brian Ortega and Renato Moicano was supposed to go down at UFC 331 this weekend (Sat., Sept. 19, 2026) inside Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California. Unfortunately, it’s not happening anymore. Ortega has withdrawn from the Lightweight matchup because of an undisclosed injury, UFC officials announced Monday. No timetable has been provided for “T-City’s” return. This is the second time Ortega vs. Moicano 2 has been canceled. UFC first attempted to run it back by booking the rematch for UFC 326 earlier this year, but Ortega withdrew because of lingering injuries. The two first met at UFC 214 in 2017, producing a thrilling fight that earned “Fight of the Night” honors. All three judges had the fight tied through two rounds before Ortega secured a third-round guillotine choke, handing Moicano the first loss of his professional career. Nine years later, their rivalry remains unsettled. Moicano will not remain on the UFC 331 lineup. Instead, “Money” has been moved into a five-round main event against No. 11-ranked Lightweight Tom Nolan at UFC Vegas 123 on Halloween (Sat., Oct. 31, 2026) inside Meta Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. MONEY 💵 vs BIG TRAIN 🚂@MoicanoUFC will now face Tom Nolan in the #UFCVegas123 main event! [ LIVE OCT 31 on @ParamountPlus ] pic.twitter.com/d464PbEcGv — UFC (@ufc) September 14, 2026 Moicano (21-7-1) snapped a two-fight losing streak in his most recent outing, submitting Scottish slugger Chris Duncan in the main event of UFC Vegas 115 (watch highlights). Before that victory, “Money” dropped a unanimous decision to Beneil Dariush after suffering a short-notice Lightweight title loss to Islam Makhachev. Nolan (11-1), meanwhile, is riding a five-fight winning streak since suffering a brutal knockout loss in his UFC debut. The 26-year-old Australian is coming off the biggest victory of his career, defeating then-ranked contender Fares Ziam to announce himself as a legitimate player at 155 pounds. Now, Nolan gets his first UFC main event and an opportunity to add the biggest name yet to his rapidly improving resume. Here is how UFC Vegas 123 currently looks: Renato Moicano vs. Tom Nolan Yana Santos vs. Luana Santos Julian Erosa vs. JeongYeong Lee Andre Petroski vs. Azamat Bekoev Jean-Paul Lebosnoyani vs. Farman Hasanov Francis Marshall vs. Gaston Bolanos Nick Klein vs. Joe Kropschot Rodrigo Sezinando vs. Theodor Berggren Tainara Lisboa vs. Lucia Szabova The removal of Ortega vs. Moicano leaves UFC 331 with 12 fights, while the Heavyweight matchup between Gable Steveson and Sean Sharaf has been promoted to the main card. As for Ortega vs. Moicano 2, perhaps the third booking will finally be the charm. Then again, maybe this rematch is simply cursed. To checkout UFC’s upcoming schedule of events click here.
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September 15, 2026 at 12:32 AM
Injured Brian Ortega pulled from UFC 331, ‘Money’ paid with Halloween main event (at Apex)
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