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UFC 293 has lost a fight after an injury to Casey O’Neill forced her to withdraw from a meeting with Viviane Araujo.
O’Neill suffered a broken nose, a person close to the fighter who requested anonymity told MMA Fighting. Stepping into her place is one-time title challenger Jennifer Maia, who most recently handed O’Neill her first professional loss in a meeting at UFC 286. The news was first reported by MMA Junkie.
O’Neill confirmed her withdrawal on Twitter and wrote she would undergo surgery to repair her injury.
Hurts to say this but unfortunately I am out of my fight in Sydney. Just had surgery on Friday and have already started recovering, looking to get rebooked in December ! Next year I’ll make sure I’m on an Australia card ❤️
— Casey Oneill (@kingcaseymma) August 8, 2023
UFC 293 takes place Sept. 10 at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney. The event remains without a scheduled headliner, though multiple reports have indicated a middleweight title fight between champ Israel Adesanya and Sean Strickland is the frontrunner.
Araujo, the No. 14 ranked flyweight in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings, is on a career skid with a 1-3 ledger in her past four outings, including a decision loss to Amanda Ribas at UFC 285. Maia, the No. 10 fighter, is on a two-fight winning streak.
