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]
| UFC on ESPN: Ribas vs. Namajunas | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 The poster for UFC on ESPN: Ribas vs. Namajunas | ||||
| Information | ||||
| Promotion | Ultimate Fighting Championship | |||
| Date | March 23, 2024 | |||
| Venue | UFC Apex | |||
| City | Enterprise, Nevada, United States | |||
| Attendance | Not announced[1] | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
| ||||
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 | |
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]
