Marina Rodriguez

Marina Rodriguez makes weight ahead of a fight. Photo Credit: Getty Images

Marina Rodriguez vs. Carla Esparza off of UFC’s July 15 event after positive COVID-19 test

The UFC’s July 15 event on “Fight Island” took another hit in the form of Marina Rodriguez and Carla Esparza.

The women’s strawweight bout was removed from the card after one of Rodriguez’s corners tested positive for COVID-19. First reported by MMA Fighting, the UFC is taking precautionary measures even though Rodriguez tested negative for the virus. 

Rodriguez is undefeated at 12-0-2, earning two victories and a pair of draws inside the octagon. The Brazilian most recently fought to a draw against Cynthia Calvillo at UFC on ESPN 7 this past December.

Esparza is on a three-fight win streak, most recently beating Michelle Waterson by split decision aUFC 249 on May 9. The former UFC strawweight champion is 7-4 since winning “The Ultimate Fighter” season 20 in 2014.

After Anderson dos Santos was removed from the same event for testing positive for COVID-19, this is the second bout to be affected by the virus.

With the removal of the Marina Rodriguez and Carla Esparza fight, the card now looks like this:

Calvin Kattar vs. Dan Ige – 145 lbs
Pedro Munhoz vs. Frankie Edgar – 135 lbs
Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Mounir Lazzez – 170 lbs
Jared Gordon vs. Chris Fishgold – 145 lbs
Molly McCann vs. Taila Santos – 125 lbs
Liana Jojua vs. Diana Belbiţă – 125 lbs
Ricardo Ramos vs. Lerone Murphy – 145 lbs
John Phillips vs. Duško Todorović -185 lbs
Tim Elliott vs. Ryan Benoit – 125 lbs
Paul Craig vs. Gadzhimurad Antigulov- 205 lbs

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Connor Northrup
Connor Northrup once covered municipal meetings and promised himself never again. He is now combining his passion for Mixed Martial Arts and reporting all into one.