UFC 256 Loses Sergey Spivak-Jared Vanderaa Due to Positive COVID-19 Test

I can confirm reports that Jared Vanderaa vs. Sergey Spivak is OFF #UFC256. Vanderaa tested positive for COVID-19, per sources.

— Farah Hannoun (@Farah_Hannoun) December 10, 2020

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The hits keep coming for the final Ultimate Fighting Championship pay-per-view card of the year.

MMA Junkie first confirmed the scattered reports that Jared Vanderaa (11-4) had tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday. The story has since been confirmed by multiple outlets. He was to face Sergey Spivak (11-2) at UFC 256 on Dec. 12, but the heavyweight match will have to wait. It is currently unclear if the promotion will attempt to keep Spivak on the card against a new foe, but with two days’ notice the options may be sparse in the COVID-19 era of the sport.

Vanderaa’s positive test pushes back his promotional debut after his signing on this most recent season of Dana White's Contender Series. “The Mountain” crushed Harry Hunsucker in the first round to earn a contract, with a finish rate of 91 percent after finishes in 10 of his 11 career victories. The former champ of Extreme Fighting Championship in South Africa previously appeared on a trio of Legacy Fighting Alliance cards in 2017, 2018 and 2019, but he lost in all three.

Spivak was looking to go on his first win streak of his UFC career, as he has alternated wins and losses in his four bouts inside the Octagon. The Moldovan started his career off at a perfect 9-0 with nine finishes within two rounds, only to suffer a 50-second knockout to Walt Harris in his organizational debut in 2019. Like his opponent, “The Polar Bear” posts a 91 percent stoppage rate, although he prefers submissions while Vanderaa would rather finish his foe with strikes.

UFC 256 currently proceeds with 10 bouts at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, where it will be headlined by a flyweight championship showdown between Deiveson Figueiredo and Brandon Moreno. A high-stakes lightweight tilt draws the co-main assignment, as former interim titleholder Tony Ferguson takes on the surging Charles Oliveira. Additional bouts on the main card include Renato Carneiro vs. Rafael Fiziev at lightweight, Ronaldo Souza against Kevin Holland at middleweight and a heavyweight scrap between Junior dos Santos and Ciryl Gane.