Gillian Robertson was supposed to face off with Andrea “KGB” Lee at UFC 256 in just a week’s time. It was a step up in competition, and most certainly name value, for the record-setting Canadian flyweight. That fight will have to wait, however.
During Saturday’s UFC Vegas 16 broadcast, the promotion announced that Robertson (9-4) will now be fighting Taila Santos (16-1) one week later at UFC Vegas 17. The event, the final card of the UFC’s 2020 year, takes place on December 19.
Santos had been expected to face Montana De La Rosa on the UFC Vegas 16 card, only for De La Rosa’s cornerman to test positive for COVID-19. That saw the pair’s fight fall through just hours before the event was expected to get underway.
Andrea Lee, meanwhile, apparently suffered a broken nose during training, per a report by MMA Fighting. That left Robertson in need of an opponent just as Santos fell out of her own fight.
Robertson has won two straight, and was looking to climb up the rankings in the UFC’s women’s flyweight division. Lee, a former LFA champion, represented an opportunity to do just that. Brazil’s Santos, however, is a very different opponent. She currently sits outside the top 15, and was looking to break into the rankings with a potential win over Montana De La Rosa.
The UFC Vegas 17 card is headlined by Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson vs. Geoff Neal. That fight replaced Khamzat Chimaev vs. Leon Edwards, which was lost after Edwards tested positive for COVID-19.
