Joel Álvarez withdraws from UFC 315 due to injury; his next fight will be at welterweight.

Bad news for the Spanish Armada in the UFC. Asturian Joel Álvarez will not be fighting against Benoit Saint Denis on May 10 at UFC 315 in Montreal (Canada) due to an injury to one of his hands, as reported by UFC White Tiger on 'X' and confirmed by this newspaper. Furthermore, as ABC MMA has learned, the decision to move up to welterweight is firm and, despite not having made this last 'shot' at lightweight against the Frenchman, the next fight that El Fenómeno will contest will be at 170 pounds (77.1 kilos) , probably towards the last quarter of the year.

It has certainly been a cold shower for mixed martial arts fans , who were eagerly awaiting this duel that was part of the main card of the numbered event in May, where other cards will also be at stake, as Belal Muhammad will defend his welterweight title against Australian Jack Della Maddalena, and Valentina Shevchenko will defend her flyweight belt against Frenchman Manon Fiorot.

On previous occasions, Joel Álvarez had seen his fights canceled due to visa difficulties in countries like Australia or the United States; however, in this case, the intensive paperwork had paid off, and he was cleared to work inside the Octagon in the United States . Thus, the UFC is rapidly searching for a replacement for Benoit Saint Denis, one of the big names in the event due to its location in French-speaking Canada. Mateusz Rebecki has been approached as a replacement.

Whatever the case, El Fenómeno will now have to recover from his injury and begin thinking about his transition and body transformation to welterweight, a division in which he is also expected to be very competitive. With 22 wins and 22 finishes, Joel Álvarez is one of the most spectacular fighters in the company, where he already holds a record of seven wins and only two losses. We'll have to wait and see his return, but it will undoubtedly be in style.