Dominick Cruz has withdrawn from his UFC 169 main event against Renan Barao and has vacated his UFC bantamweight title, UFC president Dana White announced Monday afternoon.
Cruz (19-1) suffered a groin injury that forced him to pull out of the event. This is the latest in a series of setbacks for the 135-pound champ.
The 28-year-old has not competed in 26 months after several knee surgeries and setbacks.
White announced that Barao (33-1, 1 NC) is now the undisputed bantamweight champ and that his “interim champion” tag has been removed.
Barao will remain on the card and fight Urijah Faber in the headliner, which takes place Feb. 1 in Newark, N.J. The bout is a rematch of when the two men fought in the main event at UFC 149 in Calgary with Barao earning a unanimous decision win.
In the co-main event at UFC 169, featherweight champion Jose Aldo will defend his title against Ricardo Lamas. The card also features a bout between heavyweight stars Frank Mir and Alistair Overeem.
