The co-main event of UFC Vegas 22 featuring Gregor Gillespie and Brad Riddell has been canceled due to COVID-19 protocols.
UFC Vegas 22 is set to go down tonight live from the UFC APEX center in Las Vegas. However, just a few hours before the start of the event, the card lost the co-main event. The UFC announced that the lightweight co-main event between Gregor Gillespie and Brad Riddell has been postponed, first reported by Marc Raimondi. The reasoning they gave was due to COVID-19 protocols.
Although details were not released pertaining to the nature of the COVID protocol, it could be that one of the fighters themselves or their corner could have tested positive or began to show symptoms. The plan is to reschedule the bout for a later date.
Gillespie was looking to make his return to the Octagon after 16 months off. His last time out was a first-round KO loss to Kevin Lee back in November of 2019. As for Riddell, this was to be the biggest fight of his young UFC career. He had the co-main event spot against a veteran of the sport and was more than ready for it. He made his Octagon debut in 2019 and has gone 3-0 since.
Although the UFC has not officially announced it at this point, the Women’s Strawweight between Cheyanne Buys vs. Montserrat Ruiz should get the bump up to the co-main event slot. Yesterday the card lost another bout between Julija Stoliarenko and Julia Avila when Stoliarenko fainted at the official weigh-ins. The card will proceed with ten fights at this time.
Which upcoming event would you like to see Gillespie vs. Riddell added to?
