UFC women's flyweight contender Tracy Cortez has been forced out of her scheduled return to the Octagon next month.
Cortez (11-2) is 0-1 in 2024, having fallen short in a late-notice main event against former strawweight queen Rose Namajunas in Denver this past July. When the Phoenix native replaced Maycee Barber, her sights briefly shifted away from Miranda Maverick.
But after failing to climb the ladder at the expense of "Thug Rose," Cortez's attention went back to the unranked 27-year-old, with the pair's rearranged bout added to the lineup for the UFC Fight Night in Tampa, Florida on Dec. 14.
Unfortunately for "Fear The" Maverick, she's once again had that matchup fall through. MMA Junkie's Nolan King reported on Tuesday that Cortez has withdrawn due to an injury.
The hope is that a replacement opponent will be found to allow Maverick (14-5) to remain on the card and complete her third outing of the year. After closing out her 2023 with a submission of Priscila Cachoeira, the Missouri standout has added the names of Andrea Lee and Dione Barbosa to her win streak in 2024.
With this removal, the current fights expected to take place at the UFC Fight Night inside Tampa's Amalie Arena on Dec. 14 are as follows:
- Ian Garry vs. Joaquin Buckley (welterweight main event)
- Mackenzie Dern vs. Amanda Ribas (strawweight co-main event)
- Cub Swanson vs. Billy Quarantillo (featherweight)
- Michael Johnson vs. Ottman Azaitar (lightweight)
- Manel Kape vs. Bruno Silva (flyweight)
- Joel Álvarez vs. Drakkar Klose (lightweight)
- Adrian Yañez vs. Daniel Marcos (bantamweight)
- Davey Grant vs. Ramon Taveras (bantamweight)
- Josefine Knutsson vs. Piera Rodriguez (strawweight)
- Navajo Sterling vs. Tuco Tokkos (light heavyweight)
- Sean Woodson vs. Fernando Padilla (featherweight)