Susurkaev withdraws: Baisangur Susurkaev, 12-0, has pulled out of his fight with Donte Johnson at UFC 334 on November 14 at Madison Square Garden in New York, for undisclosed reasons. Johnson, 9-0, stays on the card and will face Brazil’s César Almeida, 7-3, a former kickboxing champion. The clash between 2 unbeaten middleweights is off.
Key takeaways
- Baisangur Susurkaev (12-0) has withdrawn from UFC 334 for undisclosed reasons; his middleweight fight with Donte Johnson (9-0) is off.
- Johnson stays on the November 14 card at Madison Square Garden and will face César Almeida (7-3), according to AG Fight, as reported by Sherdog and Sports Illustrated.
- Johnson is 3-0 in the UFC, with wins over Cody Brundage and Sedriques Dumas; Almeida is 3-3 and coming off a knockout loss to Damian Pinas in July.
Susurkaev withdraws, an unbeaten clash lost
An unexplained withdrawal
Baisangur Susurkaev, unbeaten in 12 fights, has pulled out of his scheduled bout with Donte Johnson. Neither the UFC nor his team has given a reason.
A highly anticipated fight
The matchup pitted 2 unbeaten middleweights on the UFC’s New York card and was billed as one of the most intriguing bouts of the night.
Broken by Brazilian media
Brazilian outlet AG Fight first reported the change, later confirmed by Sherdog and Sports Illustrated.
Donte Johnson vs César Almeida
Johnson, 9 wins and no losses
Donte Johnson, 27, is unbeaten in 9 fights and 3-0 in the UFC, with wins over Cody Brundage and Sedriques Dumas.
Almeida, a kickboxing veteran
César Almeida, 38, built his career in kickboxing, including Glory, and was WGP Kickboxing cruiserweight champion in 2018. He earned his contract on the Contender Series in 2023.
An even UFC record
In the UFC, Almeida beat Dylan Budka, Ihor Potieria and Abdul Razak Alhassan, but lost to Roman Kopylov, Cezary Oleksiejczuk and then Damian Pinas, by round 1 knockout at UFC 329 in July.
Susurkaev (12-0) vs. Johnson (9-0) was among the most intriguing undercard bouts announced for the UFC's upcoming trip to the Big Apple.
The UFC 334 card
Gane vs Hokit on top
UFC 334 takes place on November 14 at Madison Square Garden, with Ciryl Gane vs Josh Hokit for the heavyweight title in the main event.
A change 6 weeks out
The withdrawal comes 6 weeks before the event, giving Johnson time to prepare for a different kind of opponent, a former kickboxer.
Follow the card
Records for Johnson and Almeida and our weekly middleweight rating are in the FightHub app, with an alert for every card change.
- UFC returns to Doha on November 21, a year after selling out its Qatar debut
- Contender Series week 8: 4 finishes, 4 UFC contracts and the 1st slam knockout in the show’s history
- UFC bonuses explained: how the $100,000 awards and the $25,000 finish bonus work in 2026
- Contender Series Week 5: four new UFC contracts, led by a prospect Dana White likened to Jon Jones
