UFC Fight Night 293 has a new main event, and it came together late. Sean Brady was scheduled to meet Gabriel Bonfim in a welterweight headliner on Nov. 7 at the Meta Apex in Enterprise, Nevada. On Oct. 29, Brady withdrew due to a staph infection in his knee, and the bout was canceled. The UFC then booked a heavyweight fight that had not originally been scheduled — Waldo Cortes-Acosta vs. Johnny Walker — as the event’s new headliner.
That makes UFC Vegas 124, also known as UFC Fight Night 293, a card defined by adjustment. The original main event is gone, a heavyweight bout has been elevated into the top slot, and a women’s strawweight co-main event with real division implications now sits underneath it. For fans, the appeal is straightforward: a reshuffled main event, a consequential co-main, and a lineup that has been altered repeatedly in the final weeks.
The New Main Event
The original plan was a welterweight bout between Gabriel Bonfim, a former LFA Welterweight Champion, and Sean Brady. Brady’s staph infection in his knee forced him out on Oct. 29, and the bout was canceled rather than rescheduled for this card. Bonfim does not appear on the finalized lineup.
In its place, the UFC booked Waldo Cortes-Acosta vs. Johnny Walker at heavyweight. Cortes-Acosta is a former LFA Heavyweight Champion; Walker is a longtime light heavyweight name now stepping into a heavyweight main event. The bout was not originally scheduled for this event, which adds a layer of uncertainty — but it also gives both men a main event platform they would not otherwise have had.
Stylistically, the matchup is a contrast in approaches. Cortes-Acosta is a compact, heavy-handed boxer who prefers to pressure opponents and work in close. Walker is rangy and unorthodox, a fighter who thrives on distance, movement and sudden exchanges. Cortes-Acosta’s path is to close space and make the fight physical; Walker’s is to keep the fight at range and force mistakes. The stakes are clear: Cortes-Acosta can claim a main event win at heavyweight, while Walker can prove that a heavier assignment suits him against a career heavyweight.
Rest of the Card
The co-main event is Tatiana Suarez vs. Virna Jandiroba in a women’s strawweight bout that has been scheduled twice before. They were first matched for UFC on ESPN: Sandhagen vs. Font in August 2023, but Jandiroba withdrew due to a knee injury. They were scheduled again for UFC 310 in December 2024, but Suarez withdrew due to an unspecified health issue. Now the fight finally has a date.
Both fighters bring strong credentials. Suarez is a former UFC Women’s Strawweight Championship challenger and The Ultimate Fighter: Team Joanna vs. Team Cláudia strawweight winner. Jandiroba is a former Invicta FC Strawweight Champion and a former strawweight title challenger. The winner should move firmly into the strawweight title conversation.
The rest of the main card includes Davey Grant vs. Elijah Smith at bantamweight, Ko Seok-hyeon vs. Wellington Turman at welterweight, Billy Elekana vs. Lucas Fernando at light heavyweight, and Mantas Kondratavičius vs. Andre Petroski at middleweight. Petroski replaced Wesley Schultz, who pulled out of the bout.
The preliminary card features Gabriel Lorenço vs. Thomas Petersen at heavyweight. Lorenço is a promotional newcomer; Petersen, a former LFA heavyweight champion, replaced Alvin Hines after Hines withdrew due to vertigo. Also on the prelims: Karine Silva vs. Gabriella Fernandes at women’s flyweight, Mitch Raposo vs. Marcos Degli at flyweight, José Mauro Delano vs. Murtazali Magomedov and Keiichiro Nakamura vs. Ollie Schmid at featherweight, Priscila Cachoeira vs. Nina Nikolija Milošević at women’s bantamweight, and Jonny Parsons vs. José Henrique Souza at welterweight.
One announced bout remains unresolved: Austin Bashi was scheduled to face Lucas Brennan at featherweight, but Brennan withdrew due to a full-thickness tear of his ACL. It is unclear whether a replacement opponent will be found; Bashi is currently listed as facing an opponent to be determined.
How to Watch
Date: Saturday, Nov. 7, 2026
Venue: Meta Apex, Enterprise, Nevada (Las Vegas Valley)
Broadcast details: [BROADCAST DETAILS TBC] — the event’s fight card is listed under Paramount+.
What’s at Stake
For the heavyweight division, this main event is an unexpected opportunity. Cortes-Acosta and Walker were not originally booked to headline, but the late change gives one of them a visible win at heavyweight. For strawweight, Suarez vs. Jandiroba is the more directly consequential fight: two established contenders, finally meeting after two previous cancellations, with the winner positioned for bigger things.
A card that lost its original headliner now has a different question attached to it: who makes the most of the change?
Fight to Watch: Suarez vs. Jandiroba — the co-main carries the clearest divisional implications.
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