Joanne Calderwood has been forced out of her main event slot with Paige VanZant due to undisclosed reasons, and former women’s strawweight title challenger Rose Namajunas has stepped up on short notice to headline UFC Fight Night 81 in December.

Calderwood out, Namajunas faces VanZant in UFN 81 main event

VanZant’s teammate, Justin Buchholz, confirmed the news on Tuesday night’s Stud Show Radio.

Namajunas picked up her first promotional victory at UFC 192 earlier this month with an impressive first-round submission over Angela Hill. In her UFC debut, she took on Carla Esparza for the inaugural women’s 115-pound championship but lost the bout via submission.

VanZant is 3-0 in the UFC. She made her debut last year against Kailin Curran and picked up a late TKO win. Following that, “12 Gauge” picked up a decision over Felice Herrig and most recently, a slick submission over Alex Chambers.

UFC Fight Night 80 takes place live from The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas on December 10.

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