Joanne Calderwood says her bout with Valentina Shevchenko will not be taking place on June 6 and it has nothing to do with the coronavirus.
Calderwood was scheduled to challenge Shevchenko for the UFC women’s flyweight championship on June 6. The title bout would’ve been featured on the UFC 251 card. The event is expected to be headlined by a featherweight title rematch between champion Alex Volkanovski and Max Holloway.
Calderwood Says Shevchenko Bout Is Delayed
Calderwood says the delay has been caused by something on Shevchenko’s end and not the COVID-19 crisis.
“We got word last week that it’s going to get pushed back,” Calderwood told MMA Fighting’s Eurobash podcast.
“Not because of this whole thing, but something on her end. I’m not sure if I’m supposed to say that, but we know for sure that it’s not going to be on June 6. I don’t know, I’m not sure what happened or what’s what, but it’s been pushed back. It could be a blessing in disguise.”
UFC 251 is scheduled to take place inside the Perth Arena in Perth, Australia. Fight fans are hoping things will clear up in time for the UFC to pull off the card on its planned June 6 date. The promotion has had to postpone three events but UFC president Dana White wants to have those cards rescheduled.
The good news for Calderwood is that she is still next in line for the women’s 125-pound gold. She has gone 3-1 in her last three outings. Her last defeat was at the hands of Katlyn Chookagian, who recently suffered a TKO loss to Shevchenko. While some may scoff at Calderwood as a viable contender, she is clearly the rightful contender in a young division that has some work to do before being established.
