Photo by Alexandre Schneider /Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC
Featherweight Luiz Eduardo Garagorri will no longer be competing on the September 19th Fight Night card.
And so it begins.
Just as fight week for UFC Vegas 11: Covington vs. Woodley gets underway, the first cancellation due to coronavirus has emerged. Per MMA Fighting’s report, featherweight Luiz Eduardo Garagorri will not take on Mirsad Bektic this Saturday, following the news that one of his coaches has tested positive for COVID-19.
It’s currently unknown whether the UFC will search for a last minute replacement, as they have signed several following other recent late notice fight card changes. Or if they’ll simply re-book Garagorri vs. Bektic for a later date.
In his last outing, Luiz Eduargo Garagorri (13-1) took the first loss of his professional fighting career, when he got tapped out by Ricardo Ramos on the undercard of UFC Fight Night: Blachowicz vs. Jacare. Before that, the 31-year-old scored a unanimous decision win over Humberto Bandenay, in August of the same year, when he made his Octagon debut.
UFC Fight Night 178 is scheduled to take place at the UFC Apex facility, in Las Vegas, NV, on September 19th. The card is expected to be headlined by a welterweight bout between former champion, Tyron Woodley, and ex-interim title-holder Colby Covington. A welterweight bout between Donald Cerrone and Niko Price is set for the co-main event. Stay tuned to Bloody Elbow for more last minute card changes as the event approaches.