The UFC finally returned to Canada after a four-year absence with UFC 289, which went down at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia.
The card was originally expected to be headlined by a trilogy fight between two-division UFC champion Amanda Nunes and Julianna Peña, but an injury forced “The Venezuelan Vixen” to withdraw and gave #5-ranked Irene Aldana her first shot at UFC gold.
Aldana had an opportunity to upset Nunes and become the fourth Mexican fighter to win a UFC title this year, but instead "The Lioness" put on a dominant performance before announcing her retirement from the sport.
The night's co-main event saw Charles Oliviera compete in his first non-title bout since 2020, and the former lightweight champion may find himself fighting for UFC gold again after he snapped Beneil Dariush's eight-fight win streak by finishing him in the first round.
The UFC 289 main card also featured a thrilling featherweight contest between Dan Ige and Nate Landwher, plus Canadian fighters Mike Malott and Marc-André Barriault scored big wins in front of the Vancouver crowd.
Top-ranked middleweights Chris Curtis and Nassourdine Imavov met in the night’s featured prelim but the fight unfortunately ended in a No Contest due to a clash of heads, however several impressive performances earlier on the event's undercard helped kick off what turned out to be a perfect 6-0 night from Canadian fighters to mark the UFC's return to the country.
You can check out the quick results from the entire UFC 289 card below!
Main Card (ESPN+ PPV, 10 p.m. ET)
• Main Event: Amanda Nunes (c) def. Irene Aldana via Unanimous Decision (50-44x2, 50-43) - For the UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship
• Co-Main Event: Charles Oliveira def. Beneil Dariush via TKO: R1, 4:10
• Mike Malott def. Adam Fugitt via Submission (Guillotine Choke): R2, 1:06
• Dan Ige def. Nate Landwehr via Unanimous Decision (29-28x2, 30-27)
• Marc-André Barriault def. Eryk Anders via Unanimous Decision (30-27x3)
Prelims (ESPN/ESPN+, 8:00 p.m. ET)
• Nassourdine Imavov vs. Chris Curtis ends in a No Contest (accidental clash of heads): R2, 3:04
• Jasmine Jasudavicius def. Miranda Maverick via Unanimous Decision (29-28x3)
• Aiemann Zahabi def. Aoriqileng via KO: R1, 1:04
• Kyle Nelson def. Blake Bilder via Unanimous Decision (30-27x2, 29-28)
Early Prelims (ESPN+, 7:00 p.m. ET)
• Steve Erceg def. David Dvořák via Unanimous Decision (29-28x2, 30-27)
• Diana Belbiţă def. Maria Oliveira via Unanimous Decision (30-27x2, 29-28)
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