Fighters Only : Reinier de Ridder Gets New Opponent After Anthony Hernandez Pulls Out of UFC Vancouver

Paul Browne

Sep 16, 2025

The highly anticipated bout between Anthony Hernandez and Reinier de Ridder in October has been called off, according to UFC officials.

Hernandez (15-2 MMA, 9-2 UFC) and de Ridder (21-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC) were scheduled to meet in the main event at UFC Fight Night 262 in Vancouver, Canada, on October 18, in a matchup expected to have major implications for the middleweight title picture.

However, “Fluffy” has been forced to withdraw due to an undisclosed injury, and de Ridder is now slated to face Brendan Allen (25-7 MMA, 13-4 UFC) instead.

“As you’ve all probably seen unfortunately, I’ve had to pull out of my upcoming fight due to injury,” Hernandez wrote in a post on his Instagram account. “I want to sincerely apologize to the UFC, to my opponent Reiner de Ridder, and to everyone who was looking forward to this matchup.

“I also want to thank Brendan Allen for stepping up, it means a lot. To my fans, thank you for always tuning in, supporting me, and riding with me through everything.

“Right now my focus is on getting healthy so I can come back stronger than ever. When I return, I’ll be ready to make a statement.”

Both Reinier de Ridder and Anthony Hernandez forced their way into the middleweight title conversation with statement wins over the summer. “RDR” extended his unbeaten start in UFC with a split decision victory over former champion Robert Whittaker in the main event at UFC Abu Dhabi in July.

Before that, the former two-division ONE Championship titleholder had stopped Gerald Meerschaert, Kevin Holland, and Bo Nickal to announce his arrival in the organization in style.

Hernandez has also been on an impressive run, with his career-best performance against Roman Dolidze in August marking his eighth straight victory.

It had been rumored that a standout performance from either de Ridder or Hernandez in Vancouver could propel them past Nassourdine Imavov in the race to become the first challenger to middleweight champion Khamzat Chimaev, but Hernandez’s withdrawal now likely cements Imavov’s shot at the title.

Replacing Hernandez will be former LFA champion Brendan Allen (25-7 MMA, 13-4 UFC). “All In” returned to the win column at UFC 318 in July when he outpointed former title challenger Marvin Vettori over three rounds, breaking a two-fight skid.