Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on
your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the
ESPN app. Try as it might, the Ultimate Fighting Championship cannot shed
COVID-related withdrawals from fight cards. On his Instagram on Friday,
beloved veteran Jim Miller
(32-16, 1 NC) posted a video announcing that he has come down with
COVID-19. His bout with Nikolas
Motta (12-3) at
UFC Fight Night 192 inside the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Sept.
18 has been scratched. As of now, it is unclear if the promotion
will be able to find a replacement within the week for the
Brazilian lightweight.
“There’s a first time for everything,” a disappointed Miller
explained. “In the leadup to my 50th professional fight, having
never pulled out of a fight before, I tested positive for ‘rona.
So, I will not be fighting next weekend unfortunately. I’ve already
talked to [UFC matchmaker Sean Shelby], gonna stay on the grind,
take a few days, load up on some vitamins and minerals and medicine
and get right back into it and potentially even fight as early as
Oct. 2.”
Miller continued, “So, I’ll keep you guys posted. And…I’ve never
really been the type to get bent out of shape by things I can’t
control. So, this is how it always happens, right? You grind for
weeks, beating the s— out of yourself getting ready for a fight,
and it’s always in the last two weeks that an illness or injury
happens. And this time, it just happened to be corona.”
Miller, already the co-owner of the most UFC bouts in history with
37, was looking to add to that total and take the lead over former
foe Donald
Cerrone at that event. Miller was aiming to bounce back from a
pair of decision defeats to Vinc Pichel
and Joe
Solecki in August 2020 and April, respectively. Every single
win for “A-10” within the last four years has come by first-round
submission.
Signing off the 2020 season of Dana White’s Contender Series, Motta captured a
one-sided decision over Joseph
Lowry to earn a contract. As a pro, the man known as “Iron
Motta” has notched two-thirds of his career wins by knockout, with
the rest coming on the scorecards. This two-decision streak Motta
is on, which includes a championship-winning performance over
Juan
Gonzalez at CFFC 79 in 2019 and the aforementioned Lowry
victory is the first such stretch in his career.
UFC Fight Night 192 rolls on at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas with a
stuffed card on Sept. 18 capped off by a light heavyweight rumble
between Anthony
Smith and Ryan Spann in
the marquee position. The co-headliner also comes at 205 pounds,
when “The Hulk” Ion
Cutelaba tries to put hands on NJCAA All-American wrestler
Devin
Clark. Motta vs. Miller was to serve in that featured position
on the main card.
