Khamzat Chimaev vs Kevin Holland fight prediction

LAS VEGAS -- The UFC has completely shuffled the top three fights on its UFC 279 card one day before the scheduled pay-per-view event, UFC president Dana White told SportsCenter in a live Instagram video Friday.

Nate Diaz now will face Tony Ferguson in the main event of the Saturday show at T-Mobile Arena. Diaz's original opponent, Khamzat Chimaev, missed weight by 7.5 pounds Friday morning, coming in at 178.5 pounds for a 171-pound-limit bout. Diaz understandably chose not to fight such an overweight opponent.

White said Chimaev started cramping and locking up during his weight cut.

"It's not by coincidence that we stack guys in the same weight on the same card in case something goes wrong. It worked out," White said. "Getting these guys to agree to different fights can be a little tough sometimes. We got it all done. We're locked in."

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Chimaev's weight miss caused a chain reaction. The UFC spent the entire morning and afternoon negotiating with all six camps for these changes. Alterations at this level so close to a UFC card are unprecedented.