Hours before UFC Vegas 53 began, the intriguing flyweight opener was lost.
Promotional officers announced Saturday that Carlos Candelario and Tatsuro Tahara were unable to compete at APEX due to illness.
The fight was moved to the May 14 promotion, where it will be headlined with a lightweight heavyweight bout between Jan Blachowicz & Aleksandar Rakic.
Taira won all 10 professional bouts. Most of these took place in Shooto, where he won their flyweight title by winning the first round. The 22-year-old has finished nine of his victories — eight of those in the first round.
Candelario (8-1) recently had his eight-fight winning streak snapped on Dana White‘s Contender Series in August, losing a controversial split decision to Victor Altamirano. Despite the loss, the UFC president awarded Candelario a contract after his second appearance on the show. After earning a unanimous decision win on the Contender Series in August 2017, “The Cannon” dealt with a litany of injuries that kept him out of action for four years, leading to a decision win at CES 63 — less than a month before his DWCS bout.
The event will continue with 11 fights including the main bout between Marlon Vera and Rob Font, ranked bantamweights.
