Renato Moicano withdraws from UFC 331. Brian Ortega has suffered an injury

The UFC 331 fight card has lost one of its most intriguing matchups. Renato Moicano will not compete at Saturday’s event after Brian Ortega withdrew due to injury. The organization was unable to find a replacement on such short notice.

Renato Moicano and Brian Ortega were set to face off again more than eight years after their first bout. Their previous fight took place at UFC 214 in 2017, when Ortega won by submission. The fight was awarded the Fight of the Night bonus at the time.

This time, the two were set to face off in the lightweight division. For Moicano and Ortega, this was an important matchup in terms of their future standing in the division and a potential return to title contention.

A few days before UFC 331, however, those plans were derailed. The organization announced that Ortega had suffered an injury and would be unable to compete.

Moicano has also been removed from the UFC 331 card

The UFC tried to find a replacement opponent for the Brazilian, but ultimately failed to finalize a new matchup. As a result, Moicano was also removed from the card.

He won’t have to wait long for his next fight, though. The Brazilian has been given a new date—and a very important fight right away.

– As a result, Moicano will now face No. 11-ranked Tom Nolan in the main event of UFC Fight Night, which will take place on October 31 at Meta APEX in Las Vegas. Moicano will make his fourth UFC main event appearance and will look to secure another spectacular stoppage victory as he takes on the red-hot Australian Nolan, who is riding an impressive five-fight winning streak, the UFC announced in an official statement.

Moicano is coming off a submission victory over Chris Duncan, which has put him back on track. Nolan, for his part, remains one of the hottest fighters in the lightweight division and will be looking to capitalize on the biggest opportunity of his career so far.

Ortega, on the other hand, hasn’t fought since August 2025, when he lost by decision to Aljamain Sterling. The American has now lost two straight fights and has just one win in his last five bouts.

Despite the cancellation of the Moicano vs. Ortega bout, UFC 331 still boasts a very strong lineup. In the main event, Joshua Van will face Alexandre Pantoja for the flyweight title, and in the co-main event, Arman Tsarukyan will take on Mauricio Ruffy.

Polish fans, however, will be particularly interested in Iwo Baraniewski’s bout, in which he will face Alonzo Menifield.

Following the changes, the UFC 331 card is as follows:

Joshua Van vs. Alexandre Pantoja – Flyweight Title Fight
Arman Tsarukyan vs. Mauricio Ruffy
Patricio Pitbull vs. Doo Ho Choi
Iwo Baraniewski vs. Alonzo Menifield
Gable Steveson vs. Sean Sharaf
Charles Jourdain vs. Marlon Vera
Tai Tuivasa vs. Robelis Despaigne
Michael Aswell Jr. vs. Joo Sang Yoo

So UFC 331 lost the Moicano vs. Ortega rematch, but the Brazilian himself was quickly given a new matchup. On October 31 in Las Vegas, he will face Tom Nolan in the main event of UFC Vegas 123.