Now likely off UFC 219, Jimmie Rivera says Marlon Moraes declined 145-pound bout

It doesn’t look good for anyone hoping to see Jimmie Rivera compete at UFC 219 on Saturday.

Jimmie Rivera was willing to fight fellow bantamweight contender Marlon Moraes at 138 pounds, then 140 pounds, and later, even 145 pounds. But none of it mattered.

Rivera was without an opponent for UFC 219 this weekend after John Lineker fell out of the bout due to an injury. Moraes quickly offered to step in, and “El Terror” verbally agreed to the matchup via social media.

As of Monday morning, it was up to the short-notice replacement to sign the dotted line. This was according to Rivera, who said Moraes would determine whether the fight would happen or not.

First, Rivera claimed Moraes said he couldn’t make 138 pounds. So then Rivera said he would let Moraes accept the fight as a 140-pound catchweight bout. But Rivera again said Moraes turned it down. It seemed as if being open to a featherweight bout would do the trick, but it didn’t.

Rivera said late Monday that Moraes turned down a fight at 145 pounds, despite initially saying he was open to fighting Rivera at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas in less than a week.

Now it seems like Rivera is after only the top three bantamweights.

Moraes last commented on the potential Rivera fight on Monday afternoon when he said he was available to fight Rivera — but on his own terms. However, what that means is not clear.

John Dodson threw his name in the hat after hearing Rivera vs. Moraes was no longer likely to occur on Saturday, adding that Rivera has avoided a fight with him in the past. Dodson is coming off a close decision loss to Moraes in November.

Unfortunately for Rivera, Dodson, and everyone else who offered to step up on short notice, according to Ariel Helwani of MMAFighting.com, Rivera remaining on the UFC 219 pay-per-view card is no longer likely.

UFC 219 is headlined by a women’s featherweight title fight between champion Cris Cyborg and Holly Holm.