Ex-UFC prospect David Michaud retires due to heart condition

Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

Former UFC prospect David Michaud retires due to heart condition

By Zac Wassink | Last updated Apr 8, 2021 6:25 PM ET

Professional Fighters League welterweight David Michaud (18-6-0) took to Twitter on Thursday afternoon to announce that his scheduled fight versus former Bellator champion Rory MacDonald on April 29 is off due to a heart condition that will likely force Michaud to retire from competing:

So this is gonna be a tough post. After multiple tests on my heart including a Cardiac MRI and talking with multiple Cardiologists, I have been informed that I got a bad ticker. I have a Congenital bicuspid aortic valve with dilated aortic root. Unfortunately I was born with this
— David Michaud (@bulldawg_170) April 8, 2021

because of the dilation of the aorta, fighting puts me at risk for an aortic dissection -- a tear in the aorta. That would be fatal under almost all circumstances. For this reason I will not be able to fight Rory Macdonald on April 29th, and unless anything changes, ever again.
— David Michaud (@bulldawg_170) April 8, 2021

Michaud, 32, offered additional information shared by Jeff Wagenheim of ESPN.

"I had an abnormal EKG on my physical that I was going to send to the PFL and the [athletic] commission, so they told me I needed additional testing on my heart," Michaud explained via text message. He also told ESPN he will require surgery if the condition worsens and will undergo cardiac examinations every six months.

Michaud's last fight occurred in December 2019 when he lost the PFL final to Ray Cooper III via second-round TKO before the promotion postponed its 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Michaud previously competed in the UFC and Bellator, among other promotions.

Zac Wassink

Zac Wassink is a longtime sports news writer and PFWA member who began his career in 2006 and has had his work featured on Yardbarker, MSN, Yahoo Sports and Bleacher Report. He is also a football and futbol aficionado who is probably yelling about Tottenham Hotspur at the moment and who chanted for Matt Harvey to start the ninth inning of Game 5 of the 2015 World Series at Citi Field. You can find him on X at @ZacWassink

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