UFC Fight Night: Yusuff vs. Barboza

UFC Fight Night: Yusuff vs. Barboza
The poster for UFC Fight Night: Yusuff vs. Barboza
Promotion	Ultimate Fighting Championship
Date	October 14, 2023 (2023-10-14)
Venue	UFC Apex
City	Enterprise, Nevada, United States
Attendance	Not announced [1]
Event chronology
UFC Fight Night: Dawson vs. Green UFC Fight Night: Yusuff vs. Barboza UFC 294: Makhachev vs. Volkanovski 2

UFC Fight Night: Yusuff vs. Barboza (also known as UFC Fight Night 230, UFC on ESPN+ 88, and UFC Vegas 81) was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on October 14, 2023, at the UFC Apex facility in Enterprise, Nevada, part of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Area, United States. ^[2]

Background

A featherweight bout between Sodiq Yusuff and Edson Barboza headlined the event. ^[3] They were previously expected to meet at UFC Fight Night: Moraes vs. Sandhagen in October 2020, but Yusuff pulled out due to undisclosed reasons. ^[4]

A bantamweight bout between Cameron Saaiman and Christian Rodriguez took place at the event. ^[5] The pairing was previously scheduled to meet at UFC 290 in July, but Rodriguez pulled out due to injury. ^[6] At the weigh-ins, Rodriguez weighed in at 140 pounds, four pounds over the bantamweight non-title fight limit. Their bout proceeded at catchweight and he was fined a percentage of his purse, which went to Saaiman. ^[7]

A women's bantamweight bout between Tainara Lisboa and Darya Zheleznyakova was scheduled for the event. ^[8] However, Zheleznyakova was removed due to undisclosed reasons and replaced by Ravena Oliveira. ^[9]

A flyweight bout between Tatsuro Taira and David Dvořák was expected to take place at the event. ^[10] However, the bout was cancelled for unknown reasons. ^[11]

A middleweight bout between Michel Pereira and Marc-André Barriault was expected to take place at the event. ^[12] However, Barriault withdrew due to medical issues and was replaced by Andre Petroski. ^[13]

A lightweight bout between Terrance McKinney and Chris Duncan was expected to take place at the event. ^[14] However, Duncan withdrew due to visa issues and was replaced by promotional newcomer Brendon Marotte. ^[15]

A flyweight rematch between Edgar Chairez and Daniel Lacerda was scheduled for the event. Their first meeting was ruled a no contest after referee Chris Tognoni mistakenly thought Lacerda was put to sleep from Chairez's standing guillotine at UFC Fight Night: Grasso vs. Shevchenko 2. ^[16] However, due to Lacerda's medical issues, the bout was cancelled. ^[17]

Results

Main card (ESPN+)
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Featherweight	Edson Barboza	def.	Sodiq Yusuff	Decision (unanimous) (49–46, 48–46, 48–46)	5	5:00
Women's Flyweight	Viviane Araújo	def.	Jennifer Maia	Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28)	3	5:00
Bantamweight	Jonathan Martinez	def.	Adrian Yañez	TKO (leg kick)	2	2:26
Middleweight	Michel Pereira	def.	Andre Petroski	TKO (punches)	1	1:06
Catchweight (140 lb)	Christian Rodriguez	def.	Cameron Saaiman	Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 29–28)	3	5:00
Preliminary card (ESPN+)
Featherweight	Darren Elkins	def.	T.J. Brown	Submission (rear-naked choke)	3	2:23
Women's Bantamweight	Tainara Lisboa	def.	Ravena Oliveira	Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28)	3	5:00
Lightweight	Terrance McKinney	def.	Brendan Marotte	TKO (knee and punches)	1	0:20
Women's Bantamweight	Melissa Mullins	def.	Irina Alekseeva	Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 29–28, 29–28)	3	5:00
Bantamweight	Chris Gutiérrez	def.	Alateng Heili	Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 30–27)	3	5:00
Women's Strawweight	Emily Ducote	def.	Ashley Yoder	Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 29–28, 29–28)	3	5:00

^[18]

Bonus awards

The following fighters received $50,000 bonuses. ^[19]

• Fight of the Night: Edson Barboza vs. Sodiq Yusuff
• Performance of the Night: Jonathan Martinez and Michel Pereira

Aftermath

On July 19, 2024, UFC announced that Irina Alekseeva – who fought at this event – had tested positive for testosterone of exogenous origin already in April, but UFC's antidoping partner at the time, USADA, failed to inform both UFC and Alekseeva in timely fashion. If the information had arrived prior to the event, Alekseeva would not have had permission to compete. Subsequent samples provided by Alekseeva were negative, but she was banned from competition by CSAD (Combat Sports Anti-Doping) for 12 months nevertheless, making her eligible to return to competition on October 15, 2024. ^[20]

See also

• Martial Arts portal

• List of UFC events
• List of current UFC fighters
• 2023 in UFC

References

1. Bohn, Mike (October 15, 2023). "UFC Fight Night 230 post-event facts: Edson Barboza sets record for Fight of the Night bonuses". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Archived from the original on October 16, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2023.
2. Cruz, Guilherme (July 27, 2023). "Edson Barboza vs. Sodiq Yusuff booked for UFC Vegas 82 in October". mmafighting.com. Archived from the original on September 21, 2023. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
3. Holland, Jesse (September 6, 2023). "Sodiq Yusuff vs. Edson Barboza promoted to main event, headlines UFC Vegas 81 on Oct. 14". mmamania.com. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
4. "Acompanhe o dia a dia do MMA em Tempo Real" [Sodiq Yusuff is out of the fight against Edson Barboza]. globoesporte.globo.com (in Brazilian Portuguese). September 22, 2020. Archived from the original on April 18, 2023. Retrieved September 22, 2020.
5. "Christian Rodriguez vs. Cameron Saaiman set for UFC Vegas 81 event". itnwwe.com. August 22, 2023. Archived from the original on August 23, 2023. Retrieved August 22, 2023.
6. King, Nolan (June 22, 2023). "Cameron Saaiman gets new UFC 290 opponent after Christian Rodriguez withdrawal". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Archived from the original on July 2, 2023. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
7. Treese, Tyler (October 13, 2023). "UFC Fight Night 230 weigh-in results: main event set; 1 fighter misses weight". sherdog.com. Archived from the original on October 13, 2023. Retrieved October 13, 2023.
8. Lima, Rafael (August 12, 2023). "Tainara Lisboa will face Darya Zheleznyakova on October 14". playmakerbrasil.com.br (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
9. Leonard, Harvey (September 17, 2023). "UFC matchmaking bulletin (9/11-9/17): Nathaniel Wood & Veronica Hardy have returns set, three cancellations". mmanews.com. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
10. Lee, Alexander K. (August 23, 2023). "Fight Roundup: Undefeated Tatsura Taira fights David Dvorak at UFC Vegas 81". mmafighting.com. Archived from the original on October 8, 2023. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
11. "David Dvorak vs Tatsuro Taira Nixed from UFC Vegas 81". itnwwe.com. September 22, 2023. Archived from the original on October 8, 2023. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
12. Hannoun, Farah (August 21, 2023). "Michel Pereira heading back to middleweight vs. Marc-Andre Barriault after UFC 291 weight miss". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Archived from the original on August 25, 2023. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
13. Andrew, David (October 6, 2023). "Andre Petroski steps up on short notice against Michel Pereira at UFC Vegas 81". sherdog.com. Archived from the original on October 7, 2023. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
14. Nag, Sayan (September 12, 2023). "Terrance McKinney to face Chris Duncan at UFC Fight Night on Oct. 14". Sherdog.com. Archived from the original on October 24, 2023. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
15. Nag, Sayan (October 9, 2023). "Brendon Marotte replaces Chris Duncan in short-notice UFC debut against Terrance McKinney on Oct. 14". sherdog.com. Archived from the original on October 9, 2023. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
16. Hannoun, Farah (September 20, 2023). "Edgar Chairez vs. Daniel Lacerda rebooked following controversial Noche UFC no contest". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Archived from the original on September 20, 2023. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
17. Anderson, Jay (October 13, 2023). "UFC Vegas 81 loses Edgar Chairez vs. Daniel Lacerda rematch due to medical issue". cagesidepress.com. Archived from the original on October 14, 2023. Retrieved October 14, 2023.
18. "UFC Fight Night: Yusuff vs. Barboza". UFC . 6 September 2023. Archived from the original on October 7, 2023. Retrieved October 8, 2023.
19. Taylor, Chris (October 14, 2023). "UFC Vegas 81 bonus report: Michel Pereira one of four fighters to take home $50k". bjpenn.com. Archived from the original on October 16, 2023. Retrieved October 14, 2023.
20. "Statement on Irina Alekseeva". Ultimate Fighting Championship . July 19, 2024.