A middleweight bout between Uriah Hall and Sean Strickland was originally expected to take place a week later at UFC 265.[3] In turn, the pairing was moved in order to headline this event.[2]
A flyweight bout between Zarrukh Adashev and Juancamilo Ronderos was originally linked to this event.[5] However, Ronderos was removed from the bout in early July and was replaced by Ryan Benoit.[6] They were originally expected to meet two months earlier at UFC on ESPN: Rodriguez vs. Waterson, but Benoit missed weight and the contest was canceled due to health concerns.[7]
A flyweight bout between former UFC Flyweight Championship challenger Alex Perez and Askar Askarov was scheduled for the event.[8] However, Askarov pulled out of the fight in early July due to a broken hand. Perez is now expected to face Matt Schnell four weeks later at UFC Fight Night 191.[9] They were originally expected to meet at UFC 262, before Perez was forced to pull out due to undisclosed reasons.[10]
A bantamweight bout between Ronnie Lawrence and John Castañeda was scheduled for this event.[11] However on July 18, Castaneda pulled out of the bout and was replaced by Trevin Jones.[12] In turn, the bout was canceled when Lawrence failed to show up for the weigh-ins due to health concerns.[13]
A heavyweight bout between Shamil Abdurakhimov and Chris Daukaus was expected to take place at the event.[17] The pairing was initially scheduled to meet one week prior at UFC on ESPN: Sandhagen vs. Dillashaw, but the matchup was removed from that card on July 19 due to COVID-19 protocols within Abdurakhimov's camp.[17] Subsequently, on July 26 the bout was yet again postponed to a future event for unknown reasons.[18]
Roman Kopylov was scheduled to meet Sam Alvey in a middleweight bout at this event.[19] However, he wasn't able to obtain a visa in time and the bout was scrapped.[20]
A welterweight contest featuring Mounir Lazzez and Niklas Stolze was also booked for this card.[21] In turn, Lazzez pulled out just a few days before the event due to visa issues and was replaced by Jared Gooden.[22] The new pairing was initially reported as canceled just hours before the event due to COVID-19 protocols, but it was later confirmed that both fighters were cleared to compete.[23]
At the weigh-ins, former UFC Women's Flyweight ChampionNicco Montaño (also The Ultimate Fighter: A New World Champion flyweight winner) and Philip Rowe missed weight for their respective bouts. Montaño weighed in at 143 pounds, seven pounds over the women's bantamweight non-title fight limit. Her bout against Wu Yanan was canceled due to the weight discrepancy. Rowe weighed in at 173.5 pounds, two and half pounds over the welterweight non-title fight limit. His bout proceeded at a catchweight and he was fined 20% of his individual purse, which went to his opponent Orion Cosce.[24]