Khamzat Chimaev forced out of Leon Edwards fight at UFC Vegas 21 due to COVID-19 (again)

Remember when Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) couldn’t seem to make a fight between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson happen? Well, trying to book a bout between Leon Edwards and Khamzat Chimaev has proven to be just as difficult.

UFC President, Dana White, recently dropped the unfortunate news to ESPN that Chimaev has once again been forced out of his scheduled showdown against Edwards — which was set to headline UFC Vegas 21 on March 13, 2021 — due to lingering COVID-19 issues.

The two Welterweights were initially booked to throw down on Dec. 19, 2020, before “Rocky” was forced to withdraw after testing positive for COVID-19. The bout was then rebooked to go down one month later, which was eventually scrapped after Chimaev tested positive for the virus.

Weeks later, the promotion booked the fight a third time, which has once again gone up in smoke. While disappointing, Chimaev’s health is priority No. 1 and we sincerely wish him a speedy recovery.

As for Edwards, he will be taken off the card and is expected to compete at a later date against a different opponent. This is just the latest unlucky blow to “Rocky,” who has been unable to step foot inside the Octagon since defeating Rafael dos Anjos in mid-2019. He was in line to face Tyron Woodley in March 2020, but that bout was scrapped after COVID-19 put the entire world on pause.

Now, all he can do is continue to play the waiting game to see who UFC matchmakers pair him up with in the near future.

Earlier today, UFC Vegas 21 lost its co-headlining act after Ryan Hall was forced out of his scheduled fight against Dan Ige with an injury. The setbacks will now force the promotion to scramble, though it does have one month to find suitable replacements.