Kayla Harrison provided a tear-filled update on her health over social media on Thursday on the heels of withdrawing from her bantamweight championship bout against challenger Amanda Nunes at UFC 324 in Las Vegas.
Shown wearing a neck brace and with tears in her eyes, Harrison said she already underwent surgery to repair a pair of herniated disks. The fight, initially scheduled for Jan. 24, is expected to be postponed to a later date.
“Hi, guys. I just wanted to give a bit of an update on my end,” Harrison said Thursday on X. “This is a tough one. I had to have surgery on my neck yesterday here in New York City with a specialist. In lieu of that, obviously we’re going to have to reschedule the fight. I just want to say I’m sorry. I’m sorry to Amanda. I was really looking forward to it, and I just want to thank everyone.
“… This is Day 1 of recovery, and the road back starts now. I don’t know God’s plans. I know He knows this is my dream, so I’ve got to praise Him in the mountains, and I’ve got to praise Him in the valleys. … That’s it. I’m sorry, guys. I’ll be back soon.”
Harrison, 34, did not address how she sustained her injury or her timeline for recovery, however multiple outlets reported she would be sidelined for at least six months.
A two-time Olympic judo gold medalist, Harrison (19-1) captured the bantamweight title in June 2025 with a submission win over Julianna Pena.
Nunes (23-5) previously held the UFC featherweight and bantamweight title belts, but the 37-year-old hasn’t competed since successfully defending the latter crown in June 2023. She vacated that championship weeks later when she announced her retirement.
The other co-main event in UFC 324 features an interim UFC lightweight title fight between former titleholder Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pimblett. Gaethje (26-5) and Pimblett (23-3) will compete to hold the title that Ilia Topuria (17-0) is ceding temporarily.
–Field Level Media
