UFC women's flyweight champion Nicco Montano was stripped of her title after failing to weigh in Friday for her UFC 228 bout against Valentina Shevchenko, UFC president Dana White told ESPN.
Montano was transported to a hospital before the weigh-in as a "precautionary measure" and due to "health concerns," according to the UFC. Neither she nor Shevchenko fought on the card.
The fight was supposed to co-headline UFC 228 at American Airlines Center in Dallas.
In a statement posted late Saturday night on her Instagram account, Montano said she felt being stripped of her belt was "uncalled for."
"There have been plenty other fighters who have not been punished for a lot more," she wrote. "Unfortunately I'm not one to be running my mouth, so I don't bring in the big bucks."
In the post, Montano wrote that she experienced issues with her kidneys as well as "an imbalance of electrolytes" and high sodium levels.
Montano (4-2) became UFC's first female flyweight champion in December but has not defended her title yet due to health reasons. She has battled a foot injury and had her tonsils removed in 2018.
Shevchenko (15-3) has been waiting for a shot at the 125-pound title and was heavily favored to defeat Montano on Saturday. During the past two months, she repeatedly said she was not confident Montano would ultimately face her.
Shevchenko posted to Instagram on Friday, saying she believed Montano plotted to "escape from the fight the last minutes."
Montano responded to Shevchenko in her post late Saturday night.
"Never have I ever experienced working with an opponent who is so heartless and disrespectful," Montano wrote. "You can absolutely guarantee I'm coming back to make my stamp and take back my belt!"
UFC has not stated whether the fight will be rescheduled.
Information from ESPN's Ariel Helwani was used in this report.