Dillon Danis has pulled out of his fight with KSI - leaving the YouTuber scrambling to find an opponent for his return to the ring next weekend.
Unbeaten jiu-jitsu black belt Danis appeared to be flippant about the event throughout the build-up, revealing last month he had no coach and wasn't sure if the fight was an exhibition or professional bout. He also appeared to only learn of the details around his weight, including a rehydration clause, over the last few days.
KSI will now face a new opponent, the second time that a rival has pulled out during his two-event boxing comeback, which will be revealed in the coming days. It was expected that the opponent will be 9-0 professional boxer and former WBA-ranked light-heavyweight Joe Fournier, who has a bout on the undercard of the show, but Mirror Fighting understands he will not be called up.
Speaking in a series of tweets this afternoon, KSI first expressed his frustration by telling fans "Two fights, two pullouts. Kmt [kiss my teeth]" and then adding in a second, more defiant message "The show must go on. I’m still fighting January 14."
The YouTube star faced a similar issue back in August when Alex Wassabi pulled out of their scheduled bout, and was replaced by two opponents. He faced rapper Swarmz and journeyman boxer Luis Pineda in a pair of farcical bouts, landing knockouts in both and was keen to make a step-up by facing Danis.
KSI's manager and Misfits Boxing boss Mams Taylor broke the news of Danis pulling out in a video for the Misfits Boxing YouTube channel. He said: "As you guys are aware, Mr Danis has made quite a few excuses, he signed a binding shortform contract and no material changes were ever made.
What do you make of Dillon Danis pulling out of the KSI fight? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!
"His team, who I feel sorry for because they're very co-operative and respectful - they came and said to me 'Dillon is pulling out of the fight'. The real reason is, from what they said to me, that he's underprepared. He has no coach, he might be struggling with weight even though there's no rehydration, he has not been able to find a team that's going to support him to bring him into the fight.
"Obviously he's got some other issues, it's very sad and unfortunate because he didn't reciprocate the respect that we've given him and no word from him. He's clearly embarrassed that he's in this position and who knows what he's going to come out with and say, but I'm disappointed.
"I never thought that someone who cares about his reputation or what people think of him as much as he does, I didn't think that this would be something despite many people saying the opposite. They said he wasn't going to show up to the fight and they were right."
