Waterson-Rodriguez to headline May 8 UFC card
Saturday's UFC Fight Night has a new main event.
A bout between Michelle Waterson and Marina Rodriguez will headline the May 8 card in Las Vegas, the promotion announced Tuesday.
Waterson and Rodriguez usually compete in the strawweight division, but this fight is being contested at flyweight because of the short notice. It'll be a five-round affair, according to MMA Junkie.
Cory Sandhagen versus TJ Dillashaw was initially scheduled as the main event, but Dillashaw withdrew last week due to an injury.
Waterson-Rodriguez was previously reported as the front-runner to headline the card, but there was a delay in finalizing the fight because of a logistical issue on Rodriguez's side, according to ESPN's Ariel Helwani.
The issue wasn't fully resolved as of Tuesday morning, sources told MMA Junkie.
Waterson, 35, is coming off a split-decision win over Angela Hill in a UFC Fight Night main event in September. "The Karate Hottie" is 2-2 in her past four fights dating back to early 2019.
Rodriguez, meanwhile, knocked out Amanda Ribas in her last contest at UFC 257 in January. The 34-year-old holds a 3-1-2 record in the promotion, with her only career loss coming by split decision against former strawweight champion Carla Esparza.
Saturday's event will also feature Donald Cerrone versus Alex Morono in the co-headliner and a welterweight clash between Neil Magny and Geoff Neal.