Written by The UFC’s year-end pay-per-view event has taken its first significant hit just one week after the lineup was officially announced as Tatiana Suarez vs. Virna Jandiroba is no longer happening.
X user MMA Melotto reported Monday that Suarez suffered an injury that has forced her out of the UFC 310 matchup on Dec. 7 in Las Vegas. A person with knowledge of the situation confirmed the news to MMA Junkie. It’s unclear if Jandiroba will remain on the card against a replacement opponent.
The fight between Suarez and Jandiroba, who are ranked No. 1 and No. 3 in the strawweight division, respectively, was widely viewed as a title eliminator to determine the next challenger for champion Zhang Weili.
Suarez (10-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC), who hasn’t lost as a professional, most recently competed in August 2023 when she submitted former champion Jessica Andrade. Her other notable UFC wins include former champions Carla Esparza and Alexa Grasso. Suarez’s career has been riddled with injuries, which kept her out of action for three-and-a-half years before she returned in February 2023.
Jandiroba (21-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC), a former Invicta FC champ, is on a four-fight winning streak after consecutive victories over Angela Hill, Marina Rodriguez, Loopy Godinez, and a Submission of the Year candidate armbar against Amanda Lemos in July.
With the change, the UFC 310 lineup includes:
Belal Muhammad vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov – for welterweight title
Alexandre Pantoja vs. Kai Asakura – for flyweight title
Ciryl Gane vs. Alexander Volkov
Nick Diaz vs. Vicente Luque
Movsar Evloev vs. Aljamain Sterling
Dominick Reyes vs. Anthony Smith
Virna Jandiroba vs. opponent TBD
Clay Guida vs. Chase Hooper
Michael Chiesa vs. Max Griffin
Cody Durden vs. Joshua Van
Related
Kai Kara-France baffled by newcomer Kai Asakura getting title shot at UFC 310: ‘They’ve got the wrong Kai’
Belal Muhammad: UFC 310 opponent Shavkat Rakhmonov hasn’t faced someone who ‘won’t back down, won’t fold’
Anthony Smith says UFC 310 matchup fits late-career criteria: ‘Dominick Reyes matters to me’
Daniel Cormier: Nick Diaz must be locked in to ‘not embarrass himself’ vs. Vicente Luque at UFC 310
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.