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. A Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight fight
with top-10 implications has fallen off about a week before it was
set to go down. According to Jessica Eye
(15-10, 1 NC) on her Instagram on Friday
night, she has been forced out of her UFC 272 pairing with Manon
Fiorot (8-1) with an undisclosed injury. The two flyweights
were going to throw down at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas in
March 5. There is no current indication as to whether the promotion
will find a replacement for Eye, preserve the matchup for a later
date or give Fiorot a different fight in the near future.
“Hey Believe’rs [sic], I’m sorry to report that I’m out of my fight
at UFC 272 due to an injury I sustained last night,” Eye wrote. “I’m
extremely disappointed as it was an incredible camp with my
original team back at home in Cleveland at Strong Style MMA. My
apologies to my opponent and the UFC. I look forward to the
opportunity to entertain and fight in front [of] you all again in a
few weeks when I’m clear[ed] to return to full contact
training.”
Eye was aiming to put an end to a three-fight skid which saw her
drop decisions to Cynthia
Calvillo, Joanne Wood
and Jennifer
Maia in succession. The Cleveland native has not won a fight
since 2019, when she topped Viviane
Araujo on the scorecards. “Evil Eye” shifted down to the
flyweight division in 2018, and she rattled off a trio of victories
to earn a title shot against Valentina
Shevchenko – she did not succeed winning the belt. As a pro, 20
of her 26 career outings have ended in the hands of the judges,
including 11 of her last 12.
France’s Fiorot has been a woman possessed since making her
promotional debut in 2021. Her first trip to the Octagon came
against Victoria
Leonardo, and she knocked “Fury” out with a head kick and
follow-up punches. Another knockout, this time against the
then-unbeaten Tabatha
Ricci, springboarded her into a matchup with Mayra
Bueno Silva in October 2021. For just the second time in her
career, “The Beast” won a fight on the scorecards, as she claimed
three clear-cut rounds in her favor to earn a place among the UFC’s
rankings at 125 pounds.
UFC 272 will carry on at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas with a
non-title grudge match serving as the main event of the
pay-per-view. Former friends and training partners Colby
Covington and Jorge
Masvidal will throw down in the welterweight division across
five rounds. The co-headliner comes in the form of a five-round
lightweight battle when Rafael dos
Anjos faces Rafael
Fiziev with major divisional implications at stake. The loss of
Eye on this card is not the only recent shakeup suffered on UFC
272, as Ludovit
Klein replaced Erick
Gonzalez against Devonte
Smith in their lightweight preliminary matchup on Friday as
well.
