CURITIBA, Brazil -- Stipe Miocic will not face 45,000 Fabricio Werdums after all.

Werdum distributed tens of thousands of masks to fans all week in Curitiba, asking them to wear it during the UFC 198 main event Saturday. However, fans weren’t allowed to enter the Arena da Baixada soccer stadium with the mask during Friday’s weigh-ins and Saturday’s event.

The UFC heavyweight champion complained about the veto while speaking to Combate TV right after the weigh-ins.

"I was doing a great campaign for the ‘happy face’. I had 45,000 (masks) done and the ‘happy face’ was vetoed at the entrance for the weigh-ins," Werdum said. "I hope it’s not vetoed tomorrow.

"I think it’s absurd, actually. I spent a lot of money, got a nice campaign to excite the crowd, people were happy, posting it on social media, and UFC comes and vetoes it. I didn’t like it, but it’s fine."

The Arena da Baixada’s security team is requesting fans to throw away the mask before they enter the stadium, and told MMA Fighting that the UFC made the call. MMA Fighting reached out to the promotion for comments, but didn’t get a response yet.