UFC 254: Cynthia Calvillo replaced by Liliya Shakirova after testing positive for COVID-19

ESPN's Brett Okamoto reported that flyweight Cynthia Calvillo (9-1-1) has withdrawn from her Oct. 24 UFC 254 pay-per-view fight versus Lauren Murphy (13-4) after testing positive for COVID-19. 

Liliya Shakirova (8-1) will now make her official UFC debut on short notice and replace Calvillo to battle Murphy during the event held at the "Fight Island" site on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. 

It's rough luck for Calvillo, as the 33-year-old hasn't lost since suffering a defeat to Carla Esparza back in December 2017. Calvillo earned a unanimous decision win over Jessica Eye in June and sits at third in the UFC rankings in the flyweight division. A win over Murphy could've put Calvillo in line for a championship shot. 

Murphy, fourth in the rankings, also has title gold on her mind as she prepares to compete on Fight Island. The 37-year-old is coming off three consecutive wins and most recently toppled Roxanne Modafferi via unanimous decision in June. 

According to Sherdog, Shakirova hasn't fought since October 2019 as part of the Gorilla Fighting promotion out of Russia. Like Murphy, Shakirova won her previous three matches. 

UFC 254 is headlined by the unbeaten Khabib Nurmagomedov (28-0-0) defending his lightweight championship versus Justin Gaethje (22-2-0).