UFC 261

UFC 261: Usman vs. Masvidal 2
The poster for UFC 261: Usman vs. Masvidal 2
Information
Promotion	Ultimate Fighting Championship
Date	April 24, 2021 (2021-04-24)
Venue	VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena
City	Jacksonville, Florida, United States
Attendance	15,269 [1]
Total gate	$3,300,000 [1]
Buyrate	700,000 [2]
Event chronology
UFC on ESPN: Whittaker vs. Gastelum UFC 261: Usman vs. Masvidal 2 UFC on ESPN: Reyes vs. Procházka

UFC 261: Usman vs. Masvidal 2 was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on April 24, 2021 at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. ^{[3] [4]}

Background

The promotion had initially planned to hold the event in Singapore. However, negotiations with the Singaporean government fizzled amongst COVID-19 protocols and the promotion initially turned to their home base of Las Vegas. ^[3] On March 15, UFC president Dana White announced the event would be moved to Jacksonville, Florida, with a full capacity of "15,000 UFC fans", marking the first time since UFC 248 in March 2020 that a full capacity crowd would be available (the UFC hosted a trio of events in Abu Dhabi in January with a limited number of fans). ^[4] Jacksonville also hosted the UFC's first fights back after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in May 2020, before the organization started hosting events in either Las Vegas or Abu Dhabi. ^[4]

A UFC Welterweight Championship rematch between the current champion Kamaru Usman (also The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians welterweight winner) and Jorge Masvidal headlined the event. ^[4] They previously met at UFC 251, where Usman defended his title via unanimous decision. ^[5]

A UFC Women's Strawweight Championship bout between the current champion Zhang Weili and former champion Rose Namajunas took place as the co-main event. ^{[6] [7]}

A UFC Women's Flyweight Championship bout between current champion Valentina Shevchenko and former strawweight champion Jéssica Andrade completed the triad of title fights. ^[8]

A middleweight rematch between former UFC Middleweight Champion Chris Weidman and Uriah Hall was expected to take place at UFC 258 in February. ^[9] They met previously in September 2010 at a Ring of Combat event for the organization's middleweight title, with Weidman winning via TKO. ^[10] However, Weidman was pulled from that event in late-January due to a positive COVID-19 test. The pairing remained intact and eventually took place at this event. ^{[11] [12]}

Johnny Walker was expected to face Jimmy Crute in a light heavyweight bout. ^[13] However, Walker pulled out due to an injury and was replaced by former UFC Light Heavyweight Championship challenger Anthony Smith. ^[14]

Randy Brown and Alex Oliveira were expected to meet in a welterweight bout at UFC Fight Night: Rozenstruik vs. Gane, but Brown pulled out due to undisclosed reasons. ^[15] They eventually fought each other at this event. ^[16]

A bantamweight bout between Mark Striegl and Johnny Muñoz was expected to take place at the event. ^[17] However, Striegl was removed from the bout on March 24 due to undisclosed reasons and replaced by Jamey Simmons. ^[18] In turn, Simmons also pulled out on April 8 for undisclosed reasons. As a result, Muñoz was removed from the card as well and will be rescheduled for a future event. ^[19]

Results

Main card
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Welterweight	Kamaru Usman (c)	def.	Jorge Masvidal	KO (punch)	2	1:02	[lower-alpha 1]
Women’s Strawweight	Rose Namajunas	def.	Zhang Weili (c)	KO (head kick)	1	1:18	[lower-alpha 2]
Women’s Flyweight	Valentina Shevchenko (c)	def.	Jéssica Andrade	TKO (elbows)	2	3:19	[lower-alpha 3]
Middleweight	Uriah Hall	def.	Chris Weidman	TKO (leg injury)	1	0:17
Light Heavyweight	Anthony Smith	def.	Jimmy Crute	TKO (doctor stoppage)	1	5:00
Preliminary card (ESPN / ESPN+)
Welterweight	Randy Brown	def.	Alex Oliveira	Submission (rear-naked choke)	1	2:50
Welterweight	Dwight Grant	def.	Stefan Sekulić	Decision (split) (28–29, 29–28, 29–28)	3	5:00
Middleweight	Brendan Allen	def.	Karl Roberson	Submission (ankle lock)	1	4:55
Featherweight	Pat Sabatini	def.	Tristan Connelly	Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 29–28, 29–28)	3	5:00
Early preliminary card (ESPN2 / ESPN+)
Bantamweight	Danaa Batgerel	def.	Kevin Natividad	TKO (punches)	1	0:50
Lightweight	Kazula Vargas	def.	Rong Zhu	Decision (unanimous) (30–26, 29–28, 29–28)	3	5:00
Flyweight	Jeff Molina	def.	Aori Qileng	Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–27)	3	5:00
Women’s Strawweight	Ariane Carnelossi	def.	Na Liang	TKO (punches)	2	1:28

1. For the UFC Welterweight Championship.
2. For the UFC Women's Strawweight Championship.
3. For the UFC Women's Flyweight Championship.

^[20]

Bonus awards

The following fighters received $50,000 bonuses. ^[21]

• Fight of the Night: Jeff Molina vs. Aori Qileng
• Performance of the Night: Kamaru Usman and Rose Namajunas

See also

• Martial Arts portal

• List of UFC events
• List of current UFC fighters
• 2021 in UFC

References

1. Mike Bohn (2021-04-25). "UFC 261 post-event facts: Kamaru Usman's octagon streak hits rarified air". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2021-04-26.
2. Mookie Alexander (2021-04-27). "Report: UFC 261 generated over 700,000 domestic pay-per-view buys". bloodyelbow.com. Retrieved 2021-04-27.
3. Raphael Marinho (2021-02-18). "Without agreement to perform UFC 261 in Singapore, UFC opts for Las Vegas". globoesporte.globo.com. Retrieved 2021-02-18.(in Portuguese)
4. Staff (2021-03-15). "UFC 261 heads to Florida with Usman-Masvidal 2 leading three title fights in front of full crowd". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2021-03-15.
5. Andreas Hale (2020-07-14). "UFC 251 results: Kamaru Usman dominates Jorge Masvidal to retain UFC Welterweight title". dazn.com. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
6. Ariel Helwani (2021-02-26). "Sources: Zhang Weili vs. Rose Namajunas for strawweight title being targeted for UFC 261". espn.com. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
7. Mathew Scott (2021-03-09). "UFC 261: Zhang Weili confirmed to fight Rose Namajunas on April 24 in strawweight title clash". scmp.com. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
8. Brett Okamoto (2021-02-24). "Valentina Shevchenko-Jessica Andrade flyweight title fight set for UFC 261". espn.com. Retrieved 2021-02-24.
9. Mike Bohn (2020-11-17). "Uriah Hall, Chris Weidman agree to rematch at UFC 258 on Feb. 13". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2021-01-28.
10. Keith D'Souza (2020-12-09). "Uriah Hall set to rematch Chris Weidman at UFC 258". essentiallysports.com. Retrieved 2021-01-29.
11. Ariel Helwani (2021-01-28). "Chris Weidman tests positive for COVID-19, bout vs. Uriah Hall now off". espn.com. Retrieved 2021-01-28.
12. Mike Bohn (2021-01-29). "Uriah Hall vs. Chris Weidman rematch shifts from UFC 258 to UFC 261 after positive COVID-19 result". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2021-01-29.
13. Brett Okamoto (2021-01-02). "UFC light heavyweights Jimmy Crute, Johnny Walker agree to March 27 fight, sources say". espn.com. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
14. Danny Segura (2021-02-09). "Anthony Smith replaces Johnny Walker, meets Jimmy Crute at UFC 261 in April". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2021-02-09.
15. John Morgan (2021-02-22). "Randy Brown out of UFC Fight Night 186; Alex Oliveira needs new opponent". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2021-02-22.
16. Staff (2021-03-24). "Rescheduled matchup of Randy Brown vs. Alex Oliveira among additions to UFC 261". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2021-03-28.
17. Mike Heck (2021-03-03). "Johnny Munoz vs. Mark Striegl added to UFC 261". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
18. Nolan King (2021-03-24). "With Mark Striegl out, Jamey Simmons targeted to fight Johnny Munoz at UFC 261". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
19. Jack Welch (2021-04-08). "Johnny Munoz vs Jamey Simmons off for UFC 261". behindthegrind.co. Retrieved 2021-04-19.
20. "UFC 261: Usman vs. Masvidal 2". Ultimate Fighting Championship. 5 March 2021. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
21. Staff (2021-04-25). "UFC 261 bonuses: Kamaru Usman, Rose Namajunas among $50,000 no-brainers". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2021-04-25.