A last-second change has been made to the UFC Vegas 69 main event with Erin Blanchfield now set to face Jessica Andrade in a five-round showdown at flyweight.
The UFC announced the change during the UFC 284 broadcast on Saturday.
After two of her coaches had been denied visas to the United States, Taila Santos (Blanchfield) decided not to fight on February 18. The one-time challenger to the flyweight title lost her fight. This forced the late change.
With Santos out, the UFC secured Andrade as a replacement after she just fought at UFC 283 a few weeks ago where she decimated Lauren Murphy in a lopsided decision over three rounds.
Overall, Andrade is 3-0 in her past three fights as she bounced back and forth between flyweight and strawweight since losing a title fight to 125-pound queen Valentina Shevchenko in 2021.
As for Blanchfield, the 23-year-old prospect will look to keep her seven-fight win streak intact, which includes four victories in the UFC. Most recently, Blanchfield earned an impressive first round submission finish over Molly McCann at UFC 281.
Blanchfield and Andrade will be fighting in the UFC Vegas 69, main event, which is taking place at UFC APEX Las Vegas.
Guilherme Cruz contributed to this report.
Source: https://www.mmafighting.com/2023/2/11/23596015/jessica-andrade-now-faces-erin-blanchfield-in-new-ufc-vegas-69-main-event?rand=96749
