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Amanda Nunes withdrew from UFC 249 due to an ankle injury, according to coach Silveira.
Amanda Nunes was expected to defend her featherweight title against Felicia Spencer at UFC 249 but the two-division champ withdrew from the bout for undisclosed reasons.
It was speculated that Nunes pulled out of the bout due to training complications related to the coronavirus pandemic but American Top Team (ATT) head coach Conan Silveira says ‘The Lioness’ suffered an ankle injury and was unable to continue.
“Amanda had a small ankle injury, she preferred to stop and treat, rather than running, because we were at that stage where we didn’t know what would happen. We didn’t know if it would be May 9, where it was going to be, we had several questions and few answers,” Silveira told Brazilian MMA outlet Combate in a recent interview.
Silveira didn’t give a timeline for Nunes’ return but said the UFC women’s bantamweight and featherweight titleholder is looking to get back in the Octagon ASAP.
“In the training we were doing before we stopped, she got hurt and we didn’t want to force it. We prefer to stop and treat, for her to be ready, as she always has been, to return as soon as possible.”
UFC 249, which features a headlining interim lightweight title bout between Tony Ferguson and Justin Gaethje, is scheduled to take place on May 9 at the VyState Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida.