A broken nose suffered in training has forced Claudia Gadelha out of her Invicta 4 main event bout with Carla Esparza, according to Invicta co-owner Shannon Knapp.
Gadelha (9-0) was slated to meet Esparza (8-2) to crown the company’s inaugural strawweight champion on Jan. 5 at Memorial Hall in Kansas City, KS.
While a replacement has yet to be named, the plan is still for Torrance, Calif.-based Esparza to headline the card in a 115-pound title fight.
“Claudia broke her nose in five different places and had to have surgery,” said Knapp. “I can’t name names yet, but we’ve got a few solid potential replacements to fight Carla.”
Knapp also announced a change in Invicta’s broadcast team for Jan. 5. Mauro Ranallo is unavailable to announce the show, so Bas Rutten will take his place. Rutten will join Julie Kedzie and “King Mo” Lawal on commentating duties.