Andrea Lee was supposed to step in and fight Kalindra Faria at UFC 216, but then USADA pulled Lee from the fight due to a previous violation.
However, just days before the event, a replacement has been found to fight Faria in the form of Mara Romero Borella.
Borella (11-4-0-1NC) is going to be making her UFC debut in this fight and she does so on the strength of a five fight winning streak. Borella competed once under the Invicta FC banner, defeating Milana Dudieva by split decision at Invicta FC 24. Borella hasn’t suffered a defeat in about two years, with that last defeat coming to Jin Tang at Kunlun Fight 33 in October 2015.
Faria (18-5-1) will also be making her UFC debut in this fight and she is also the current Titan Fighting Championships Women’s Flyweight Champion. Faria is also returning to action after a year-plus layoff, as her last bout took place in September of 2016. Faria had also challenged for the World Series Of Fighting Women’s Strawweight Title, losing to then champion Jessica Aguilar at the WSOF 15.
UFC 216 takes place on Saturday, October 7 from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada with Tony Ferguson and Kevin Lee headlining. Fightful is providing live coverage of the event, with a post-show podcast to follow.
