Mr. Bye-light

Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

In the old days, whatever lineup you had entering fight week was usually the same card by the first bell on Saturday night, unless someone botched their weight cut or slice…


UFC 247: Ewell v Martinez
Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

In the old days, whatever lineup you had entering fight week was usually the same card by the first bell on Saturday night, unless someone botched their weight cut or sliced themselves open in final rounds of sparring.

These days, it seems like coronavirus makes every fight week card a roll of the dice. Maybe everyone shows up in one piece, maybe not. Case in point: we’re just a few days out from UFC Vegas 18 and Andre Ewell is being removed from the lineup.

That’s according to MMA DNA.

Ewell was a short-notice replacement for Merab Dvalishvili, who was unable to keep his commitment due to complications from COVID-19. Now, Cody Stamann will have to wait and see if the promotion can scrounge up a third opponent before Friday’s weigh ins.

Stamman (19-3-1) is looking to rebound from his unanimous decision loss to Jimmie Rivera at UFC on ESPN 13 last July. “The Spartan” is 5-2-1 under the UFC banner and sits just outside the Top 10 at No. 13.

To see the revised UFC Vegas 18 fight card and lineup click here.