''UFC 138: Leben vs. Muñoz'' 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 held 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 ...

on November 5, 2011 at LG Arena in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

, United Kingdom. The event aired on the same day, via tape delay, on

Spike TV Paramount Network is an American basic cable television channel owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Media Networks. The network's headquarters are located at the Paramount Pictures studio lot in Los Angeles. The channel was o ...

in the United States and live on

Sportsnet Sportsnet is a Canadian English-language sports specialty channel owned by Rogers Sports & Media. It was established in 1998 as CTV Sportsnet, a joint venture between CTV, Liberty Media, and Rogers Media. CTV parent Bell Globemedia then ...

in Canada. The event was the second that the

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 ...

has hosted in

, the first was

UFC 89 ''UFC 89: Bisping vs. Leben'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on October 18, 2008, at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham, United Kingdom. Background The event was headlined by a middleweight b ...

back in 2008 also featuring

Chris Leben Christian Cyrus Leben (born July 21, 1980) is an American former mixed martial artist, referee, and bare knuckle boxer. A professional MMA competitor from 2002 until 2013, he most notably competed in the UFC in the Middleweight division, compiling ...

in the main event.

Background

After several tentatively scheduled 2011 events at various locations around the United Kingdom did not materialize, including

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

, London as well as a planned return to Ireland, it was expected that the organization would not hold an event in the area during 2011. The main event was the first non-title five round fight in the history of the

. Mark Scanlon was expected to face James Head at this event. However, Scanlon was pulled from the bout and replaced by promotional newcomer John Maguire Then, on September 28, Head himself pulled out of the fight due to an undisclosed injury and was replaced by Justin Edwards.

Pascal Krauss Pascal "Panzer" Krauss (born April 19, 1987) is a retired German mixed martial artist who competed in the welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). His German nickname translates to 'tank' in English. Early life and educ ...

was expected to face

John Hathaway John Lawrence Hathaway (born 1 July 1987) is an English mixed martial artist who competes in the welterweight division. Mixed martial arts career Background and early career Formerly an open-side flanker for local rugby team Hove RFC, Hatha ...

at this event. However, on August 30 Krauss pulled out of the bout citing a shoulder injury, and was replaced by Matt Brown. Then on October 17 it was announced that Hathaway was forced to withdraw from the bout due to injury as well. As a result, Brown was pulled from the event and will face

Seth Baczynski Seth Baczynski (born October 26, 1981) is an American professional mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter currently competing in the Middleweight (MMA), Middleweight division. A professional since 2006, Baczynski has formerly competed for the UFC, and ...

UFC 139 ''UFC 139: Shogun vs. Henderson'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on November 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California. It was the first UFC event in San Jose, the longtime home and base are ...

Phil De Fries Philip De Fries (born 21 April 1986) is a British mixed martial artist currently competing in the Heavyweight division of Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki. A professional competitor since 2009, De Fries has formerly competed for the UFC, Bellator, an ...

was expected to face

Oli Thompson Oli or OLI may refer to: Places * Oli-ye Jonubi, a village in Bushehr Province, Iran * Oli-ye Shomali, a village in Bushehr Province, Iran People * Óli, a Faroese and Icelandic given name * Oliver (given name), nickname * Oli (footballer), a ...

at this event. However, on October 17 it was announced that Thompson was forced to withdraw from the bout due to injury. De Fries fought

Rob Broughton Rob Broughton (born 3 March 1983) is an English former mixed martial artist who competed in the heavyweight division. A professional competitor between 2004 and 2015, Broughton is a former British Cage Rage heavyweight champion and has also co ...

at this event instead.

Anthony Njokuani Anthony Obinna Njokuani (born March 1, 1980) is a Nigerian-American professional mixed martial artist and kickboxer. A professional competitor since 2001, Njokuani has also formerly competed for the UFC, WEC, and ONE Championship. Background B ...

was scheduled to fight Paul Taylor on the main card. However, Taylor sustained a

whiplash Whiplash may refer to: * The long flexible part of a whip * Whiplash (medicine), a neck injury ** Whiplash Injury Protection System (WHIPS), in automobiles Film and television * ''Whiplash'' (1948 film), a US film noir about a boxer * ''Whiplas ...

injury during a minor traffic collision on November 1 forcing him from the bout. Due to insufficient time to find a replacement, Njokuani was moved to a future card, while a prelim fight between

Cyrille Diabate Cyrille is both a French masculine given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include: People with the given name * Cyrille Adoula (1921–1978), Congolese politician who served as Premier of the Republic of the Congo (1961– ...

and

Anthony Perosh Anthony Perosh (born 5 October 1972) is a retired Australian professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Light Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Perosh was born and raised in Sydney, Australia and ...

was promoted to the main card. This event averaged 1.8 million viewers on

. After the event

tested positive for illegal substances and was subsequently suspended for a year.

Results

Bonus awards

Fighters were awarded $70,000 bonuses. * Fight of the Night: Brad Pickett vs. Renan Barão * Knockout of the Night: Che Mills * Submission of the Night: Terry Etim

References

{{UFC Events Ultimate Fighting Championship events 2011 in mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts in the United Kingdom Sport in Birmingham, West Midlands 2011 in England Events in Birmingham, West Midlands