Cynthia Calvillo remains on the UFC roster despite reports promotion officials confirmed her UFC departure earlier this year.
A bout between Calvillo (9-6-1 MMA, 6-6-1 UFC) and Elise Reed (7-3 MMA, 3-3 UFC) is being finalized for the upcoming UFC Fight Night event Sept. 16, which is Mexican Independence Day. The event, which will be centered around many of the promotions Mexican and Mexican-American athletes will take place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and is headlined by Alexa Grasso vs. Valentina Shevchenko 2.
Two people with knowledge of the targeted booking informed MMA Junkie of the matchup Friday but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. ESPN Deportes first reported the news.
Calvillo, 36, most recently competed at UFC 287 in April when she lost a decision to Loopy Godinez. The defeat was her fifth in a row. After the fight, algorithm-based Twitter account UFC Roster Watch detected Calvillo’s removal from fan ranking eligibility. UFC officials subsequently confirmed to MMA Fighting she was released from the promotion. It is unclear what circumstances changed, if anything.
Reed, 30, has alternated losses and wins since her UFC debut in July 2021. She most recently competed in June when she defeated Jinh Yu Frey by unanimous decision.
With the addition, the UFC Fight Night lineup for Sept. 16 includes:
- Champion Alexa Grasso vs. Valentina Shevchenko – for women’s flyweight title
- Shavkat Rakhmonov vs. Kelvin Gastelum
- Tracy Cortez vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius
- Chris Curtis vs. Anthony Hernandez
- Lupita Godinez vs. Sam Hughes
- Cynthia Calvillo vs. Elise Reed
- Edgar Chairez vs. Daniel Lacerda
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for the UFC Fight Night on Sept. 16.
