2 fights off UFC card due to positive COVID-19 tests
Saturday's UFC Fight Night event has taken several hits just hours before its scheduled start time.
The UFC scratched a heavyweight fight between Marcos Rogerio de Lima and Alexander Romanov and a lightweight bout between Thiago Moises and Jalin Turner from the card due to positive COVID-19 tests, the promotion announced.
Moises and Rogerio de Lima, teammates at American Top Team, were the fighters who tested positive, sources told MMA Fighting's Alexander K. Lee, Mike Heck, and Guilherme Cruz. Two coaches from the Florida gym, Katel Kubis and Leonardo dos Santos, apparently returned positive tests earlier this week.
Additionally, the UFC removed Kevin Natividad from his featherweight clash against Brian Kelleher "as a precaution." Natividad reportedly had a false positive result earlier this week, but a second COVID-19 test came back negative Thursday. He participated in the weigh-ins on Friday morning, as did Moises and Rogerio de Lima.
The promotion added Natividad to the card Monday after Kelleher's original opponent, Ricky Simon, was scratched from the fight due to one of his cornermen testing positive for the virus.
Kelleher will now fight Ray Rodriguez on less than a day's notice. Rodriguez, a UFC newcomer, weighed in as a backup fighter for Natividad on Friday.
UFC Fight Night will proceed with seven bouts, the fewest amount on a card since the "TUF 2" finale in November 2005, according to Sherdog's Jay Pettry. Saturday's show will have no preliminary bouts and will start at 7 p.m. ET - an hour before the original main card's scheduled beginning.
A heavyweight tilt between Alistair Overeem and Augusto Sakai headlines the event.