''UFC 263: Adesanya vs. Vettori 2'' was a
mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, inc ...
event produced by the
Ultimate Fighting Championship
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
that took place on June 12, 2021, at the
Gila River Arena
Desert Diamond Arena (originally Glendale Arena and formerly Jobing.com Arena and Gila River Arena) is an indoor multi-purpose entertainment arena located in Glendale, Arizona. The venue anchors the 223-acre, $1 billion Westgate Entertainment D ...
in
Glendale, Arizona
Glendale () is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, located approximately northwest of Downtown Phoenix. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 248,325.
History
In the la ...
, United States.
Background
The event was the second that the promotion has contested in Glendale, following
UFC on Fox: Poirier vs. Gaethje in April 2018.
Zuffa
Zuffa, LLC () is an American sports promotion company specializing in mixed martial arts. It was founded in January 2001 in Las Vegas, Nevada, by Station Casinos executives Frank Fertitta III and Lorenzo Fertitta to be the parent entity of the ...
had previously hosted the final
World Extreme Cagefighting
World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) was an American mixed martial arts, mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion founded in 2001. It was purchased by Zuffa, LLC, the parent company of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC ...
event,
WEC 53
''WEC 53: Henderson vs. Pettis'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting that took place on December 16, 2010 at Jobing.com Arena in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, Arizona. The event was the first time that Zuffa has h ...
, at the arena in December 2010.
A
UFC Middleweight Championship
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships.
Historical notes
At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classe ...
bout between then champion
Israel Adesanya
Israel Mobolaji Odunayo Oluwafemi Temitayo Owolabi Adesanya (born 22 July 1989) is a New Zealand professional mixed martial artist, kickboxer, and former boxer with multiple championships in all three disciplines. As a mixed martial artist, h ...
and
Marvin Vettori
Marvin Vettori (born September 20, 1993) is an Italian professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Middleweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2012, Vettori is a former Venator FC Wel ...
headlined the event. The pair previously met at
UFC on Fox: Poirier vs. Gaethje, where Adesanya won via split decision.
A
UFC Flyweight Championship
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships.
Historical notes
At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classe ...
rematch between champion
Deiveson Figueiredo
Deiveson Alcântara Figueiredo (born December 18, 1987) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is the two-time and current UFC Flyw ...
and former title challenger
Brandon Moreno
Brandon Carrillo Moreno (born December 7, 1993) is a Mexican professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Flyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former UFC Flyweight Champion, and the cu ...
took place as the co-main event.
The pairing previously met in December 2020 at
UFC 256
''UFC 256: Figueiredo vs. Moreno'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on December 12, 2020 at the UFC Apex facility in Enterprise, Nevada, part of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Area, United ...
, where Figueiredo retained the title after the bout was scored a majority draw.
A light heavyweight bout between
Paul Craig
Paul may refer to:
*Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name)
*Paul (surname), a list of people
People
Christianity
*Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chris ...
and
Jamahal Hill
Jamahal Hill (born May 19, 1991) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Light Heavyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of December 6, 2022, he is #7 in the UFC light heavyweight ...
took place at the event.
[ ] The pairing was previously scheduled to take place at
UFC on ESPN: Brunson vs. Holland, but Hill withdrew from that event on March 10 after
testing positive for COVID-19.
A welterweight fight between
Leon Edwards
Leon Aaron Edwards (born 25 August 1991) is an English professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Welterweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is the current UFC Welterweight Champion. A profe ...
and former
UFC Lightweight Championship
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships.
Historical notes
At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classe ...
challenger
Nate Diaz
Nathan Donald Diaz (born April 16, 1985) is an American professional mixed martial artist who is currently a free agent. Diaz is most known for his time spent fighting in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he fought for over 15 year ...
(also
The Ultimate Fighter 5
''The Ultimate Fighter 5'' was the fifth season of the Ultimate Fighting Championship produced reality television series ''The Ultimate Fighter''. As with the show's usual format, sixteen prospective mixed martial arts fighters were secluded in a ...
lightweight winner) was expected to take place at
UFC 262
''UFC 262: Oliveira vs. Chandler'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on May 15, 2021 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, United States.
Background
A UFC Lightweight Championship b ...
. However, Diaz pulled out due to a minor injury in early May and the bout took place at this event. Despite the different date, the pairing retained its original status, marking the first time in UFC history that a non-title bout other than the main event was scheduled for five rounds.
A women's bantamweight bout between
Karol Rosa
Karolline Rosa Cavedo (born December 30, 1994) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist. A professional since 2012, she currently competes in the Bantamweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of October 3, 2022, she is #9 in t ...
and
Sijara Eubanks
Sijara Jihan Eubanks (born April 27, 1985) is an American professional mixed martial artist who currently fights in the women's bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
Background
Eubanks was born and raised in Springfi ...
was scheduled to take place at the event. However, Rosa pulled out of the fight in late-May citing an eye injury. In turn, Eubanks was removed from the card and will face
Priscila Cachoeira
Priscila Cachoeira Gomes Da Silva (born 19 August 1988) is a Brazilian female mixed martial arts fighter. She currently competes in the Flyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Personal life
Cachoeira had a troubled childhood gr ...
six weeks later at
UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen vs. Dillashaw instead.
A lightweight bout between
Frank Camacho
Franklin Beldad Camacho (born May 18, 1989) is a Chamorro mixed martial artist in the lightweight division. He was a 2010 Blue Belt Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World champion and a 2006 Micronesian Games wrestling gold medalist. He competed in the Ultima ...
and
Matt Frevola
Matthew Kenneth Frevola (born June 11, 1990) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor since 2014, he has also competed for th ...
was originally scheduled to take place at
UFC on ESPN: Blaydes vs. Volkov in June 2020, but Frevola was pulled from the fight during the week leading up to the event after teammate and
cornerman
In combat sports, a cornerman, or second, is a coach or trainer assisting a fighter during a bout. The cornerman is forbidden to instruct and must remain outside the combat area during the round. In the break, they are permitted to enter the ri ...
Billy Quarantillo
Billy Quarantillo (born December 8, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist who currently competes in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He was the former King of the Cage Lightweight Champion.
Mixed martial arts ...
tested positive for COVID-19. Despite two negative tests, Frevola was removed from the bout in an abundance of caution. They were then rescheduled for this event. In turn, Camacho pulled out of the fight four days before the event after being injured in a car accident. Frevola faced promotional newcomer
Terrance McKinney
Terrance Kitarius McKinney (born September 15, 1994) is an American professional mixed martial artist who currently competes in the lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2017, McKinney also compet ...
instead.
At the weigh-ins,
Steven Peterson
Steven Timothy Peterson (born May 29, 1990) is an American professional mixed martial artist. Peterson currently competes in the Featherweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional competitor since 2010, Peterson ha ...
weighed in at 148.5 pounds, two and a half pounds over the featherweight non-title fight limit. His bout proceeded at catchweight and he was fined 20% of his purse, which went to his opponent
Chase Hooper
Chase Alan Hooper (born September 13, 1999) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Mixed martial arts career
Hooper began his amateur MMA career while he wa ...
.
Results
Bonus awards
The following fighters received $50,000 bonuses.
* Fight of the Night: Brad Riddell vs. Drew Dober
* Performance of the Night: Brandon Moreno and Paul Craig
Reported payout
The following is the reported payout to the fighters as reported by the Arizona Department of Gaming. It does not include sponsor money and also does not include the UFC's traditional "fight night" bonuses. Total disclosed purses for the event was $3,233,000.
* Israel Adesanya: $500,000 (no win bonus) def. Marvin Vettori: $350,000
* Brandon Moreno: $200,000 (includes $100,000 win bonus) def. Deiveson Figueiredo: $210,000
* Leon Edwards: $220,000 (includes $110,000 win bonus) def. Nate Diaz: $250,000
* Belal Muhammad: $160,000 (includes $80,000) def. Demian Maia: $175,000
* Paul Craig: $110,000 (includes $55,000 win bonus) def. Jamahal Hill: $28,000
* Brad Riddell: $80,000 (includes $40,000 win bonus) def. Drew Dober: $87,000
* Eryk Anders: $150,000 (includes $75,000 win bonus) def. Darren Stewart: $45,000
* Lauren Murphy: $140,000 (includes $70,000 win bonus) def. Joanne Calderwood: $51,000
* Movsar Evloev: $72,000 (includes $36,000 win bonus) def. Hakeem Dawodu: $55,000
* Pannie Kinziad: $56,000 (includes $28,000 win bonus) def. Alexis Davis: $43,000
* Terrance McKinney: $24,000 (includes $12,000 win bonus) def. Matt Frevola: $23,000
* Steven Peterson: $46,000 (includes $23,000 win bonus) def. Chase Hooper: $37,000 ¹
* Farès Ziam: $28,000 (includes $14,000 win bonus) def. Luigi Vendramini: $15,000
* Carlos Felipe: $50,000 (includes $25,000 win bonus) def. Jake Collier: $28,000
¹ ''Although not recognized on the official pay sheet, Steven Peterson was fined 20 percent of his purse ($9,200) for failing to make the required weight for his fight with Chase Hooper. That money was issued to Hooper, an ADOG official confirmed.''
Records set
The event broke the record for
the most decisions on a single UFC card with 11, breaking the five-way tie with
UFC 169
''UFC 169: Barão vs. Faber 2'' was a mixed martial arts event held on February 1, 2014, at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
The event was released on DVD on May 6, 2014. The DVD was distributed by the label ''Anchor Bay Entertainment ...
,
UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Mousasi,
UFC Fight Night: Silva vs. Bisping,
UFC Fight Night: Werdum vs. Tybura, and
UFC on ESPN: dos Anjos vs. Edwards. This event was also the longest
UFC
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
event with 3:19:32 of fight time.
See also
*
List of UFC events
This is a list of events held and scheduled by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States. UFC's first event, UFC 1, took place on November 12, 1993. Each UFC event contains several fight ...
*
List of current UFC fighters
This list of current UFC fighters records current Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fighters' information, country origins, recent fighter signings and departures, fight schedules and results and the champion of each division. , the UFC roster ...
*
2021 in UFC
The year 2021 was the 28th year in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States.
Releases and retirements
These fighters have either been released from their UFC contracts, ...
References
{{2021 in mixed martial arts
Ultimate Fighting Championship events
2021 in mixed martial arts
June 2021 sports events in the United States
Mixed martial arts in Arizona
Sports in Glendale, Arizona
Events in Glendale, Arizona