By Hunter Homistek

Yesterday, news broke that former UFC middleweight champ Anderson Silva was forced off May 14's UFC 198 card.

Silva's opponent Uriah Hall is now also out of the event after the UFC failed to locate a replacement opponent.

With the loss of Silva vs. Hall, a preliminary matchup between Warlley Alves and Bryan Barberena has been promoted from the FOX Sports 1 prelims to the pay-per-view portion of the event. A Fight Pass prelim between Francisco Trinaldo and Yancy Medeiros will then take its place on FS1. UFC editorial director Thomas Gerbasi announced both changes Wednesday morning.

While this helps smooth out the card from top to bottom, the situation is still disappointing. Silva, who underwent gallbladder surgery Wednesday morning, faces an uncertain future. At 41 years old, it's unclear whether the legend will ever fight again.

For Hall, this is a lost opportunity. An aging, slowing Silva presented the perfect opponent for this point in his career, and the stage was massive. Ranked 10th in the division, Hall could've used this opportunity to catapult into title talks. Now, he'll have to wait. Coming off a loss to Robert Whittaker at UFC 193, so unless the UFC rebooks him against Silva, it's unlikely a shot like this will materialize again in his future.

UFC 198 is headlined by a heavyweight title fight between champion Fabricio Werdum and challenger Stipe Miocic. Middleweights Vitor Belfort and Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza face off in the night's co-main event. Also on the main card, Cris Cyborg makes her UFC debut in a 140-pound catchweight tilt against Leslie Smith.