New Zealand fighter Brad Riddell's UFC lightweight bout against American Gregor Gillespie, set for today in Las Vegas, has been cancelled due to COVID-19 protocols.
New Zealand UFC lightweight Brad Riddell. Photo: Photosport
The UFC didn't expand on why the co-main event was scrapped and didn't divulge which protocols had been affected.
The fight would be rescheduled for a later date, with the rest of the 10-event card was set to continue.
News of the cancellation came prior to confirmation UFC featherweight champion, Australia's Alex Volkanovski, had tested positive for Covid-19, ruling him out of his title defence against American Brian Ortega in Las Vegas on March 28 (NZ time).
The bout had also been cancelled due to Covid protocols, but again the UFC did not reveal further details.
As well as being a UFC fighter, Riddell was a training partner and cornerman for Volkanovski.
Riddell posted a statement on his social media on Sunday saying he did not have Covid-19, having twice tested negative.
The 34-year-old Gillespie (13-1) was slated to fight for the first time since losing to Kevin Lee 16 months ago.
The 29-year-old Riddell (9-1) has won his last six bouts.
The headline bout of Saturday's card was a middleweight matchup between Derek Brunson (21-7) and Kevin Holland (21-5).
-Reuters/RNZ