Sijara Eubanks will get to stay on the UFC 230 card – just not in the spot she had hoped.
The promotion confirmed to Newsday that Eubanks will face Roxanne Modafferi in a flyweight bout on Nov. 3 at Madison Square Garden in New York. Eubanks had previously been announced to headline the card against Valentina Shevchenko for the vacant 125-pound belt. That changed when Daniel Cormier vs. Derrick Lewis became the new UFC 230 main event, as Shevchenko was moved back to UFC 231 for a flyweight title tilt against Joanna Jedrzejczyk.
Eubanks, who lashed out at the UFC following the change, bested Modafferi to reach the finals of “The Ultimate Fighter 26” against Nicco Montano. However, Eubanks was unable to make weight and was replaced by Modafferi at the “TUF 26” finale. The Team Lloyd Irvin product took a unanimous decision over Lauren Murphy at UFC Fight Night 131 in her Octagon debut on June 1.
Modafferi lost a decision to Montano for the UFC’s inaugural female flyweight strap but rebounded to score a second-round stoppage of Barb Honchak in her most recent outing at the “TUF 27” finale on July 6. “The Happy Warrior” has won seven of 10 fights since 2014.