UFC 249 has lost a fight due to coronavirus.
ESPN confirmed that middleweight contender Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza is out of his UFC 249 matchup with Uriah Hall, having tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday. The event will still proceed but with 11 fights instead of 12, according to UFC EVP and Chief Business Officer Hunter Campbell.
According to the report, Souza arrived in Jacksonville on Wednesday and notified the UFC that one of his family members had tested positive for the virus. Jacare, who was isolated and tested, was asymptomatic.
Per ESPN, “the UFC has conferred with Florida athletic officials, who said the fights can go on as scheduled because the system worked in Souza’s case.”
He’s the second active UFC fighter who’s confirmed to have tested positive for this deadly disease. Lyman Good, who was originally scheduled for UFC 249 when it was set for April 18th, withdrew from the event after testing positive for COVID-19. Unlike Jacare, Good’s test was conducted at a New Jersey drive-thru testing site and not by the UFC.
Hall obviously won’t have a replacement opponent, but since he already weighed in presumably he’ll receive at least his base salary as compensation.
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