UFC 299: Why was the fight between Lauren Murphy and Karine Silva canceled?

Lauren Murphy’s UFC 299 bout against Karine Silva was canceled due to an injury.

Murphy, a former UFC title challenger and a veteran of the UFC flyweight division, was scheduled to fight Brazil’s Karine Silva on the UFC 299 prelims. The event is scheduled to take place on March 9, and it is being touted as one of the most stacked cards of the year.

Murphy, who was the No.6-ranked flyweight contender when the fight was announced, was forced to pull out of the fight due to an injury. The nature of her injury is unknown at the moment. The news was first reported by Brazilian podcaster MMA Hoje on his social media accounts in January:

“Breaking: The fight between Karine Silva and Lauren Murphy fell. Murphy claimed an injury and Karine is waiting for a new opponent."

There was no official announcement from the UFC or other media outlets about Murphy’s injury, and her X account no longer exists. Silva was matched up with Arianne Lipski after Murphy pulled out. The fight will occur at the UFC on ESPN+ 101 event on April 27.

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Lauren Murphy removed from the flyweight rankings soon after the UFC 299 bout cancelation

Lauren Murphy was removed from the UFC flyweight rankings on January 16. Her removal came a week after MMA Hoje announced the fight against Karine Silva for UFC 299 was off. MMA journalist John Morgan revealed the reason for the 40-year-old’s removal from rankings in an X post. He wrote:

“Lauren Murphy removed from #UFC women's flyweight rankings in the first updated list of 2024, departing at No. 6. Official notice given to voters: Please note that Lauren Murphy has been removed from rankings eligibility in the womens' flyweight division due to inactivity.”

Murphy’s activity level in the UFC dropped significantly after her title fight against former champion Valentina Shevchenko in September 2021. She bounced back from the Shevchenko loss with a July 2022 win over Miesha Tate. However, former strawweight champion Jessica Andrade handed Murphy a unanimous decision loss at UFC 283 in January 2023.

Murphy’s Instagram bio suggests that she is still a part of the UFC roster. However, the timeline of her return is not clear yet.