Hannah Cifers won’t be the one welcoming Melissa Martinez to the UFC this September.
Originally scheduled to fight Sept. 10 at UFC 279, Cifers (10-7 MMA, 2-5 UFC) has withdrawn from her matchup vs. Martinez (7-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) due to undisclosed reasons.
A person with knowledge of the situation recently informed MMA Junkie of her withdrawal, but asked to remain anonymous since the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Cifers, 29, is currently on a four-fight skid and has been finished in each of the defeats. All four of those losses came in an eight-month stretch from January-August 2020. She was scheduled to fight Emily Whitmire in February, but also withdrew from that contest.
Martinez, 24, is a former Combate Global standout who signed with the UFC earlier this year. She hasn’t competed since a December 2019 split decision win over now-Bellator fighter Desiree Yanez.
With the change, the UFC 279 lineup now includes:
- Champion Aljamain Sterling vs. T.J. Dillashaw – for bantamweight title
- Norma Dumont vs. Danyelle Wolf
- Melissa Martinez vs. TBA
