Virna Jandiroba will take on former UFC champion Carla Esparza at UFC Fort Lauderdale, on April 27.
The Invicta FC strawweight champion will dive right into the deep end for her Octagon debut.
Combate reports that she will step up on short notice to replace the injured Livia Souza and take on former UFC champion Carla Esparza at UFC Fort Lauderdale, on April 27.
Undefeated in her professional MMA career, Virna Jandiroba (14-0) captured the Invicta FC belt back in March 2018, when she edged out Mizuki Inoue via split decision. Afterwards, the 30-year-old defended her title in September, tapping out Janaisa Morandin with an arm-triangle choke in the second round.
The original UFC strawweight champion, Carla Esparza (13-6) will look to snap a two-fight losing skid with losses to Claudia Gadelha and Tatiana Suarez in her last couple of outings, with the TKO defeat to Suarez serving as her most recent bout. Esparza’s last win happened in December 2017, when she bested Cynthia Calvillo via unanimous decision.
UFC Fort Lauderdale was supposed to be headlined by a middleweight bout between Yoel Romero and Ronaldo Souza, but Romero was forced out of the bout with a case of pneumonia. The UFC has not announced an official replacement for the fight as of yet.