UFC on ESPN: Ribas vs. Namajunas

UFC on ESPN: Ribas vs. Namajunas
The poster for UFC on ESPN: Ribas vs. Namajunas
Promotion	Ultimate Fighting Championship
Date	March 23, 2024 (2024-03-23)
Venue	UFC Apex
City	Enterprise, Nevada, United States
Attendance	Not announced [1]
Event chronology
UFC Fight Night: Tuivasa vs. Tybura UFC on ESPN: Ribas vs. Namajunas UFC on ESPN: Blanchfield vs. Fiorot

UFC on ESPN: Ribas vs. Namajunas (also known as UFC on ESPN 53 and UFC Vegas 89) was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on March 23, 2024, at the UFC Apex in Enterprise, Nevada, part of the Las Vegas Valley, United States. ^{[2] [3]}

Background

A women's flyweight bout between Amanda Ribas and former two-time UFC Women's Strawweight Champion Rose Namajunas headlined the event. ^[4]

A heavyweight bout between Chris Barnett and The Ultimate Fighter: Team Peña vs. Team Nunes heavyweight winner Mohammed Usman was scheduled for this event. ^[5] However, Barnett withdrew due to unknown reason and was replaced by Mick Parkin. ^[6]

Edmen Shahbazyan and Duško Todorović were expected to meet in a middleweight bout at the event. ^[6] However, Todorović pulled out due to a serious knee injury and was replaced by A.J. Dobson. ^{[7] [8]}

A women's strawweight bout between Shauna Bannon and Stephanie Luciano was expected to take place at this event. ^[9] However, Bannon pulled out for unknown reasons and was replaced by Julia Polastri. ^[10] In turn, the bout was cancelled when Luciano was forced to withdraw due to falling ill with dengue fever. ^[11]

A heavyweight bout between Junior Tafa and Karl Williams was expected to take place at the event. ^[12] However, Tafa stepped in on short notice as a replacement for his brother Justin Tafa against Marcos Rogério de Lima at UFC 298 and was eventually unable to compete at this event after losing via TKO. ^[13] He was eventually replaced by Justin at this event. ^[14]

A featherweight bout between Billy Quarantillo and Gabriel Miranda was expected to take place at the event. ^[15] However, Miranda was replaced by Youssef Zalal for unknown reasons. ^[16]

A bantamweight bout between Cody Gibson and Davey Grant was expected to take place at the event. ^[17] However, Grant withdrew due to injury and was replaced by former LFA Bantamweight Champion Miles Johns. ^[18]

Results

Main card (ESPN / ESPN+)
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Women's Flyweight	Rose Namajunas	def.	Amanda Ribas	Decision (unanimous) (49–46, 49–46, 48–47)	5	5:00
Heavyweight	Karl Williams	def.	Justin Tafa	Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 29–28, 29–28)	3	5:00
Middleweight	Edmen Shahbazyan	def.	A.J. Dobson	KO (punches)	1	4:43
Bantamweight	Payton Talbott	def.	Cameron Saaiman	TKO (punches)	2	0:21
Featherweight	Youssef Zalal	def.	Billy Quarantillo	Submission (rear-naked choke)	2	1:50
Featherweight	Fernando Padilla	def.	Luis Pajuelo	Submission (brabo choke)	1	2:45
Preliminary card (ESPN+)
Lightweight	Trey Ogden	def.	Kurt Holobaugh	Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 30–27)	3	5:00
Featherweight	Julian Erosa	def.	Ricardo Ramos	Submission (guillotine choke)	1	2:15
Bantamweight	Miles Johns	def.	Cody Gibson	Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 30–27)	3	5:00
Featherweight	Jarno Errens	def.	Steven Nguyen	Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 30–27)	3	5:00
Women's Bantamweight	Darya Zheleznyakova	def.	Montserrat Rendon	Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28)	3	5:00
Flyweight	André Lima	def.	Igor Severino	DQ (biting)	2	2:52
Heavyweight	Mick Parkin	def.	Mohammed Usman	Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28)	3	5:00

^[19]

Bonus awards

The following fighters received $50,000 bonuses. ^[20]

• Fight of the Night: Jarno Errens vs. Steven Nguyen
• Performance of the Night: Payton Talbott and Fernando Padilla

Aftermath

After the first ever disqualification due to biting took place at this event, UFC CEO Dana White gave a Bite of the Night $50,000 bonus to André Lima whose bout ended prematurely as a result of being bit on the arm by opponent Igor Severino. ^[21] Severino was subsequently released from his contract with the promotion. ^[22] The Nevada Athletic Commission also announced that it would withhold Severino's purse and he is expected to receive a heavy fine and lengthy suspension when the NAC holds its monthly meeting in April. ^[23]

See also

• Martial Arts portal

• 2024 in UFC
• List of current UFC fighters
• List of UFC events

References

1. Mike Bohn (2024-03-24). "UFC on ESPN 53 post-event facts: Igor Severino bites his way into UFC record books". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-03-24.
2. Nolan King (2023-12-20). "UFC officially announces early 2024 schedule: Dates, locations, and venues". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2023-12-20.
3. Steven Marrocco (2023-12-24). "UFC schedule 2024: Dana White and Co. book three Apex events in four weeks for March / April". mmamania.com. Retrieved 2024-01-13.
4. Mike Bohn (2024-01-12). "Rose Namajunas stays at flyweight, meets Amanda Ribas in UFC main event on March 23". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-01-12.
5. Julio Fernando Navas (2024-01-16). "Mohammed Usman faces Chris Barnett at UFC Vegas 88". mmaaldia.com. Retrieved 2024-01-16.(in Spanish)
6. Nolan King (2024-01-31). "UFC Vegas 89 adds three new fights to lineup, but loses fan-favorite". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
7. Nikola Novaković (2024-02-14). "A big pity: Another serious injury to Todorovic and the match was cancelled". sportklub.n1info.rs. Retrieved 2024-02-17.(in Serbian)
8. David Andrew (2024-02-14). "Edmen Shahbazyan vs. A.J. Dobson slated for UFC on ESPN 53 on March 23". sherdog.com. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
9. Diego Ribas (2023-12-25). "UFC books Stephanie Rondinha debut for March 23". agfight.com. Retrieved 2024-01-08.(in Brazilian Portuguese)
10. David Andrew (2024-02-17). "Stephanie Luciano vs. Julia Polastri booked for UFC on ESPN 53 on March 23". sherdog.com. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
11. Guilherme Cruz (2024-03-15). "Dengue fever forces Stephanie Luciano out of UFC Vegas 89 fight with Julia Polastri". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2024-03-15.
12. Parviz Iskenderov (2024-01-31). "Junior Tafa vs Karl Williams joins UFC Vegas 89 in March". fightmag.com. Retrieved 2024-03-03.
13. Nolan King and Mike Bohn (2024-02-16). "Junior Tafa steps into UFC 298 matchup on one day's notice after brother injured". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-03-03.
14. Mike Heck (2024-03-03). "Justin Tafa returns the favor, steps in for brother Junior to face Karl Williams at UFC Vegas 89". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2024-03-03.
15. Harvey Leonard (2024-01-21). "UFC Matchmaking Bulletin (1/15-1/21): Ovince Saint Preux Returns For 27th UFC Fight, Three Cancellations". mmanews.com. Retrieved 2024-03-15.
16. Diego Martinez (2024-03-12). "Billy Quarantillo vs. Youssef Zalal added to UFC Vegas 89". mmaaldia.com. Retrieved 2024-03-16.(in Spanish)
17. News Desk (2024-01-08). "Davey Grant vs Cody Gibson Set for UFC Vegas 88 Event". itnwwe.com. Retrieved 2024-01-08.
18. Nolan King (2024-03-11). "Matchup Roundup: New UFC, PFL, Bellator fights announced in the past week (March 4-10) Event". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
19. "UFC on ESPN: Ribas vs. Namajunas". Ultimate Fighting Championship. Retrieved 2024-01-12.
20. Chris Taylor (2024-03-23). "UFC Vegas 89 Bonus Report: Five fighters take home an extra $50k". bjpenn.com. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
21. Matt Erickson (2024-03-23). "Andre Lima's oh-so-Vegas tattoo decision after UFC on ESPN 53 made him an extra $50k". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
22. Steven Marrocco (2024-03-23). "Igor Severino to be cut from UFC after biting Andre Lima at UFC Vegas 89". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
23. Simon Samano and Nolan King (2024-03-25). "Igor Severino's UFC on ESPN 53 bite leads Nevada commission to withhold purse". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-03-25.