UFC veteran Matt Brown has been forced out of his fight with Bryan Barberena at next weekend’s UFC On ESPN 31 event in Las Vegas after testing positive for Covid-19.
“Shitty day today I tested positive for covid so my fight next weekend is off,” Brown announced on Twitter.
“I was sick af over the weekend but feel better for the most part now. Lost smell today. Did a jog outside today and lungs burned some I thought maybe it was just the cold air but maybe I’m still sick. I’ll get over it quickly and go from there.”
The 40-year-old Brown had been heading into the fight off a second round KO victory over Dhiego Lima back in June. Prior to that he’d lost two fights in a row however, having been TKO’d by Miguel Baeza and then lost out by decision to Carlos Condit.
At this stage it’s not clear if an alternative opponent will be found for Barberena, who is coming off a majority decision loss to Jason Witt in July and has lost three of his last four fights in the Octagon.
For now, with Brown vs. Barberena out, UFC ON ESPN 31 proceeds with a card that will be headlined by Jose Aldo vs. Rob Font, while Brad Riddell vs. Rafael Fiziev and Jimmy Crute vs. Jamahall Hill also feature on the main card.
