Viviane Arujo is the latest fighter to test positive for Covid-19, which has forced her out of a fight with Jennifer Maia on August 1st at the APEX facility in Las Vegas.
Arujo is believed to have experienced some coronavirus related symptoms, but hasn’t been too badly affected and her overall health is still good.
The UFC have moved quickly to find a replacement for Arujo, and now Joanne Calderwood has stepped in on short notice to fight Maia instead.
Calderwood had been earmarked as the next contender for Valentina Shevchenko’s flyweight title, but the dominant champion suffered a leg injury that led to the UFC 251 showdown being scrapped.
That will no doubt have been a bitter disappointment for Calderwood, who has won three of her last four fights since stepping back up to the 125lb weight class, defeating the likes of Kalindra Faria, Ariane Lipski and Andrea Lee along the way.
As for Maia, she is coming in off a loss to Kaitlyn Chookagian, but had earned big wins over Alexis Davis and Roxanne Modafferi.
Calderwood vs. Maia features on an August 1st card that will be headlined by another female fight, this time in the bantamweight division between Holly Holm and Irene Aldana.
