With Gilbert Burns ruled out, Jorge Masvidal is stepping in on just six days’ notice to face welterweight champion Kamaru Usman in the main event of UFC 251.
Masvidal (35-13 MMA, 12-6 UFC) was the original No. 1 contender, but after negotiations with the UFC fell through, the promotion awarded Burns the title shot instead.
But, less than a week out from the fight, Burns tested positive for COVID-19 and has been forced to withdraw, giving Masvidal the opportunity to step in and face Usman (16-1 MMA, 11-0 UFC) at UFC 251, which airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+/UFC Fight Pass from Yas Island, Abu Dhabi.
The UFC 251 poster, which also features two other title fights, has remained the same, but with the addition of the new main event.
The welterweight, featherweight, and vacant bantamweight titles are all on the line on July 11 in the first of four July fight cards to be held in the Middle East.
Check out the official poster for UFC 251 below:
MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)
- Champ Kamaru Usman vs. Jorge Masvidal – for welterweight title
- Champ Alexander Volkanovski vs. Max Holloway – for featherweight title
- Petr Yan vs. Jose Aldo – for vacant bantamweight title
- Jessica Andrade vs. Rose Namajunas
- Amanda Ribas vs. Paige VanZant
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN, ESPN+, 8 p.m. ET)
- Volkan Oezdemir vs. Jiri Prochazka
- Muslim Salikhov vs. Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos
- Makwan Amirkhani vs. Danny Henry
- Roman Bogatov vs. Leonardo Santos
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN, ESPN+, 6:15 p.m. ET)
- Alexander Romanov vs. Marcin Tybura
- Raulian Paiva vs. Zhalgas Zhumagulov
- Vanessa Melo vs. Karol Rosa
- Martin Day vs. Davey Grant
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