UFC on ESPN: Ribas vs. Namajunas

UFC on ESPN: Ribas vs. Namajunas
The poster for UFC on ESPN: Ribas vs. Namajunas
Information
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 UFC Apex in Enterprise, Nevada, 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.