UFC’s final event of 2020 has been altered again by a positive test for COVID-19.
Bantamweight Aiemann Zahabi is off the UFC Fight Night 183 card due to a positive test that he announced on social media on Thursday. Zahabi was scheduled to fight Drako Rodriguez, but tested positive for the virus in a pre-flight test before leaving for Las Vegas and is symptomatic.
“It’s heartbreaking for me not to be there fight week in Vegas but thankfully my COVID-19 symptoms haven’t been too bad so far,” Zahabi wrote in the caption to a video he released on Instagram. “Wishing you all love and safety during this pandemic.”
The Zahabi-Rodriguez bout is the third at Fight Night 183 to be impacted by COVID-19. One of the original headline fights, Leon Edwards vs. Khamzat Chimaev, was removed from the card after Edwards contracted the virus. Belal Muhammad vs. Dhiego Lima was also canceled after Muhammad registered a positive test.
Fight Night 183 will take place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The 13-fight card is now headlined by a welterweight fight between Stephen Thompson and Geoff Neal.
–Field Level Media
