UFC 268

Last updated
UFC 268: Usman vs. Covington 2
UFC 268 poster.jpg
The poster for UFC 268: Usman vs. Covington 2
Promotion Ultimate Fighting Championship
DateNovember 6, 2021 (2021-11-06)
Venue Madison Square Garden
City New York City, New York, United States
Attendance20,715 [1]
Total gate$9,800,000 [1]
Buyrate700,000(US) [2]
Event chronology
UFC 267: Błachowicz vs. Teixeira UFC 268: Usman vs. Covington 2 UFC Fight Night: Holloway vs. Rodríguez

UFC 268: Usman vs. Covington 2 was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on November 6, 2021, at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York, United States. [3]

Contents

Background

A UFC Welterweight Championship rematch between the current champion Kamaru Usman (also The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians welterweight winner) and former interim champion Colby Covington headlined the event. [4] Serving as the event headliner, they previously met at UFC 245 in December 2019, where Usman defended his title via fifth-round technical knockout. [5] Vicente Luque served as backup and potential replacement for this fight. [6] At the weigh-ins, Luque weighed in at 172.2 pounds, 2.2 pounds over the welterweight title fight limit making him ineligible to compete for the title. [7]

A UFC Women's Strawweight Championship rematch between current two-time champion Rose Namajunas and former champion Zhang Weili took place as the co-main event. [8] They previously met at UFC 261, where Namajunas won the title via first-round knockout. [9]

A women’s bantamweight bout between former UFC Women's Featherweight Champion Germaine de Randamie and Irene Aldana was expected to take place at the event. [10] However, de Randamie withdrew in early September due to injury. [11]

A middleweight bout between former Strikeforce and UFC Middleweight Champion Luke Rockhold and Sean Strickland was expected to take place at the event. [12] However on October 11, Rockhold withdrew due to a herniated disc. [13]

Phil Hawes and Chris Curtis were expected to meet in a middleweight bout at UFC Fight Night: Dern vs. Rodriguez a month earlier, but due to Curtis being tapped as a replacement just a day before that event, Hawes declined the matchup. [14] They met at this event. [15]

A featherweight contest between Melsik Baghdasaryan and T.J. Laramie was scheduled for the event. [16] However, Laramie was forced to pull out after he was diagnosed with an MRSA infection. [17] He was replaced by promotional newcomer Bruno Souza. [18] At the weigh-ins, Souza weighed in at 148.4 pounds, 2.4 pounds over the featherweight non-title fight limit. The bout proceeded at a catchweight and he forfeited 20% of his purse to Baghdasaryan. [7]

A light heavyweight fight between Aleksa Camur and John Allan was scheduled for the event. [19] However, Camur pulled out of the bout citing an undisclosed injury and was replaced by Dustin Jacoby. [20]

At the weigh-ins, C.J. Vergara weighed in at 127.4 pounds, 1.4 pounds over the flyweight non-title fight limit. His bout proceeded at a catchweight and he forfeited 20% of his purse to his opponent Ode' Osbourne. [7]

Results

Main card
Weight classMethodRoundTimeNotes
Welterweight Kamaru Usman (c)def. Colby Covington Decision (unanimous) (48–47, 48–47, 49–46)55:00 [a]
Women's Strawweight Rose Namajunas (c)def. Zhang Weili Decision (split) (47–48, 48–47, 49–46)55:00 [b]
Bantamweight Marlon Vera def. Frankie Edgar KO (front kick)33:50
Featherweight Shane Burgos def. Billy Quarantillo Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28)35:00
Lightweight Justin Gaethje def. Michael Chandler Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 30–27)35:00
Preliminary card (ESPNews / ESPN+)
Middleweight Alex Pereira def. Andreas Michailidis TKO (flying knee and punches)20:18
Lightweight Bobby Green def. Al Iaquinta TKO (punches)12:25
Middleweight Chris Curtis def. Phil Hawes KO (punches)14:27
Middleweight Nassourdine Imavov def. Edmen Shahbazyan TKO (elbows)24:42
Early preliminary card (ESPN+ / UFC Fight Pass)
Welterweight Ian Machado Garry def. Jordan Williams KO (punches)14:59
Heavyweight Chris Barnett def. Gian Villante TKO (spinning wheel kick and punches)22:23
Light Heavyweight Dustin Jacoby def. John Allan Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 30–27)35:00
Catchweight (148.4 lb) Melsik Baghdasaryan def.Bruno SouzaDecision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28)35:00
Catchweight (127.4 lb) Ode' Osbourne def. C.J. Vergara Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28)35:00
  1. ↑ For the UFC Welterweight Championship.
  2. ↑ For the UFC Women's Strawweight Championship.

[21]

Bonus awards

The following fighters received $50,000 bonuses. [22]

Aftermath

This event won the UFC Honors 2021 Event of the Year award as voted by the fans. [23]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Mike Bohn (2021-11-07). "UFC 268 post-event facts: Kamaru Usman highlights record-setting event". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2021-11-07.
  2. ↑ Alexander K.Lee (2021-11-23). "UFC 268 reportedly tops 700K pay-per-view buys in U.S." mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2021-07-13.
  3. ↑ Milan Ordoñez (2021-08-28). "UFC 268 set for New York City; Gaethje vs. Chandler, Namajunas vs. Zhang 2 confirmed". bloodyelbow.com. Retrieved 2021-08-29.
  4. ↑ Shakiel Mahjouri (2021-07-26). "Usman vs. Covington 2 set for UFC 268". mmamania.com. Retrieved 2021-07-27.
  5. ↑ Brian Campbell and Brent Brookhouse (2019-12-15). "UFC 245 results, highlights: Kamaru Usman outlasts Colby Covington in hellacious war for late TKO victory". cbssports.com. Retrieved 2021-08-29.
  6. ↑ Guilherme Cruz (2021-11-03). "Vicente Luque to serve as backup fighter for UFC 268 headliner Kamaru Usman vs. Colby Covington". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2021-11-03.
  7. 1 2 3 Alexander K. Lee (2021-11-05). "UFC 268 weigh-in results: Two title fights set; Main event backup Vicente Luque, two others miss weight". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
  8. ↑ Nolan King (2021-08-28). "Rose Namajunas vs. Zhang Weili 2 among latest additions to official UFC 268 card". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2021-08-29.
  9. ↑ Brett Okamoto (2021-04-25). "Rose Namajunas wins UFC's strawweight title with shocking knockout of Zhang Weili". espn.com. Retrieved 2021-08-29.
  10. ↑ Jay Anderson (2021-08-28). "Germaine de Randamie vs. Irene Aldana Added to UFC 268 in NYC". cagesidepress.com. Retrieved 2021-09-08.
  11. ↑ Darryl Pinto (2021-09-08). "BREAKING: Germaine de Randamie Out of Her UFC 268 Fight Against Irene Aldana". essentiallysports.com. Retrieved 2021-09-08.
  12. ↑ Daniel Cunningham (2021-08-04). "UFC books Luke Rockhold – Sean Strickland". empiresportsmedia.com. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  13. ↑ Mike Bohn (2021-10-11). "Luke Rockhold injured, out of UFC 268 fight with Sean Strickland". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2021-10-11.
  14. ↑ Alexander K. Lee (2021-10-08). "Phil Hawes vs. Chris Curtis short-notice bout off of UFC Vegas 39". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2021-10-08.
  15. ↑ Marcel Dorff (2021-10-13). "BREAKING: Yet another match between Phil Hawes and Chris Curtis, now at UFC 268 in New York". mmadna.nl. Retrieved 2021-10-14.(in Dutch)
  16. ↑ Alex Behunin (2021-08-31). "Melsik Baghdasaryan vs. TJ Laramie added to UFC 268". cagesidepress.com. Retrieved 2021-08-31.
  17. ↑ Nolan King (2021-10-23). "T.J. Laramie announces UFC 268 withdrawal after MRSA diagnosis, shares graphic images". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2021-10-23.
  18. ↑ Marcel Dorff (2021-10-30). "BREAKING: LFA Champion Bruno Souza meets Melsik Baghdasaryan on November 6 in New York". mmadna.nl. Retrieved 2021-10-30.(in Dutch)
  19. ↑ VH Gonzaga (2021-08-30). "With his sights on his first win at UFC, John Allan faces Aleksa Camur at UFC 268". superlutas.com.br. Retrieved 2021-11-01.(in Portuguese)
  20. ↑ Marcel Dorff (2021-11-01). "Dustin Jacoby replaces Aleksa Camur against John Allan in New York on Saturday". mmadna.nl. Retrieved 2021-11-01.(in Dutch)
  21. ↑ "UFC 268: Usman vs. Covington 2". Ultimate Fighting Championship. 26 August 2021. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  22. ↑ Alexander K. Lee (2021-11-07). "UFC 268 bonuses: Justin Gaethje vs. Michael Chandler thriller leads night of six winners". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2021-11-07.
  23. ↑ UFC (2022-01-16). "Dana White's 2021 President's Choice Awards - UFC Honors". YouTube. Retrieved 2024-01-13.
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