After being scratched from UFC 276, the flyweight debut of former UFC women’s 135 pound champ Miesha Tate is back on.
Tate (19-8) will face her originally scheduled opponent, Lauren Murphy (15-5), at UFC Long Island on July 16, 2022. It’s the third date the pair have been lined up for, with match-ups in May and at this coming weekend’s PPV card both falling through.
UFC officials announced the fight was off over the weekend, without disclosing why. Murphy later revealed that she had contracted COVID-19 ahead of the fight.
“It’s super unfortunate to get COVID right before International Fight Week. But I just couldn’t, in good conscience, go forward with the fight this weekend and risk getting others sick,” she wrote in a brief statement on Sunday. “I’m recovering, and will be in fighting shape soon.”
On Monday, Murphy would confirm the new date in Long Island, following an announcement from the UFC on their official website.
Murphy has not fought since her title fight loss to Valentina Shevchenko last November, which snapped a four-fight win streak. Tate went 1-1 in 2021 after returning from a four-year retirement, meanwhile. She enters the bout off a loss to Ketlen Vieira.
UFC Long Island sees the promotion return to broadcast television, and is numerically UFC on ABC 3. That could mean extra eyeballs for Tate’s flyweight debut. The card, which takes place at the UBS Arena in Elmont on Long Island, NY, consists of the following match-ups:
- Brian Ortega vs. Yair Rodríguez
- Michelle Waterson vs. Amanda Lemos
- Li Jingliang vs. Muslim Salikhov
- Matt Schnell vs. Su Mudaerji
- Ricky Simón vs. Jack Shore
- Shane Burgos vs. Charles Jourdain
- Dalcha Lungiambula vs. Punahele Soriano
- Lauren Murphy vs. Miesha Tate
- Bill Algeo vs. Billy Quarantillo
- Dustin Jacoby vs. Da Un Jung
- Dwight Grant vs. Dustin Stoltzfus
- Herbert Burns vs. Khusein Askhabov
- Philip Rowe vs. Abubakar Nurmagomedov
- Jessica Penne vs. Emily Ducote
