Ian Garry releases statement following UFC 296 withdraw

Late Wednesday night, just days before UFC 296, UFC president Dana White announced that Ian Garry was out of his fight with Vicente Luque due to a serious illness.

Of course, after weeks of being roasted by fans and even fellow fighters, many thought the pull out was convenient and just a ploy to avoid having to speak with the media.

Ariel Helwani spoke with Garry who issued a statement about the fight.

“I have pneumonia. They tried everything to help me. In the end, UFC doctor said there’s no chance I can fight. The UFC doctor made the call," Garry told Helwani. “This annoys me more than anyone. I want to fight. It’s my favorite thing to do.”

At press time, there's no word on if the UFC will be finding an opponent for Luque or if they will just postpone the fight to a later date.