Jim Miller announces withdrawal from UFC Vegas 37 due to positive COVID-19 test

Fight No. 50 will have to wait for Jim Miller.

The lightweight veteran announced Friday that he has been forced to withdraw from his upcoming bout against Nikolas Motta (12-3) scheduled for UFC Vegas 37 on Sept. 18 after testing positive for COVID-19.

Miller broke the news via a video on Instagram, noting that he hopes to be eligible to compete again by the first week of October:

“There’s a first time for everything,” Miller said. “In the lead-up to my 50th professional fight, having never pulled out of a fight before, I tested positive for ‘rona. So I will not be fighting next weekend unfortunately. I’ve already talked to [UFC matchmaker Sean Shelby], gonna stay on the grind, take a few days, load up on some vitamins and minerals and medicine and get right back into it and potentially even fight as early as Oct. 2.

“I’ll keep you guys posted. I’ve never been the type to really get bent out of shape by things I can’t control, so this is how it always happens, right? You grind for weeks, beating the s*it out of yourself getting ready for a fight and it’s always in the last two weeks that an illness or injury happens and this time it just happened to be corona.”

Miller (32-16, 1 NC) was looking to make his record 38th UFC appearance and his second for the promotion this year. He is currently mired in a 1-3 slump, most recently losing a unanimous decision to Joe Solecki in April.

It is not yet known if the UFC is seeking a new opponent to face Motta next Saturday.