Lauren Murphy will fight at UFC 254 afterall as the flyweight is now scheduled to take on Liliya Shakirova. Cynthia Calvillo was Murphy’s original opponent; however, she was forced to pull out due to testing positive for the coronavirus.
Murphy is coming in with momentum as well as the featherweight is also on a three-fight winning streak, beating Roxanne Modafferi (via unanimous decision at UFC on ESPN 11), Mara Romero Borella (via TKO at UFC on ESPN 5), and Andrea Lee (via split decision at UFC 247). Murphy’s current record stands at 13 wins and 4 losses.
Shakirova will be making her UFC debut on the strength of a three-fight winning streak due to her time in Gorilla Fighting Championships. The only blemish on her professional record comes from her loss against Julia Borisova in 2018 at Fight Nights Global. Shakirova’s professional record currently stands at 8 wins and 1 loss.
UFC 254 takes place on Saturday, October 24 from Fight Island in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi with Khabib Nurmagomedov and Justin Gaethje headlining. Check out the updated line-up:
UFC Lightweight Championship: Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Justin Gaethje
Robert Whittaker vs. Jared Cannonier
Walt Harris vs. Alexander Volkov
Phil Hawes vs. Jacob Malkoun
Lauren Murphy vs. Liliya Shakirova
Magomed Ankalaev vs. Ion Cutelaba
Stefan Struve vs. Tai Tuivasa
Alex Oliveira vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov
Sam Alvey vs. Da Un Jung
Casey Kenney vs. Nathaniel Wood
Liana Jojua vs. Miranda Maverick
Joel Alvarez vs. Alexander Yakovlev