Bellator has found a replacement to fight Austin Vanderford.
MMA Fighting confirmed with officials that Vanderford will fight Vinicius de Jesus in a middleweight bout this Thursday at Bellator 251 in Uncasville, Conn., following the withdrawal of Vanderford’s originally scheduled opponent Chris Curtis.
According to sources with knowledge of Curtis’ situation that spoke to MMA Fighting, his removal from the bout was due to a positive COVID-19 test. MyMMANews was first to report Curtis’ withdrawal.
Lightweight Piankhi Zimmerman (5-4-1) also has a new opponent for his preliminary bout after losing originally scheduled foe Nainoa Dung.