UFC 268 marks the promotion’s return to New York, after a forced absence as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
With the world slowly opening up, MMA was back in business in New York, and the UFC has pulled out all the stops for their return. Two title fights, both highly anticipated rematches. A candidate for most violent fight of the year in Justin Gaethje vs. Michael Chandler. The return of Frankie Edgar, against another fan favorite in Marlon Vera.
There was a lot to like, and even love, on the UFC 268 card. Including the main event, a rematch nearly two years in the making. Of course, there’s no love lost between welterweight champion Kamaru Usman and former interim champ Colby Covington. Covington’s brash, Trump-loving, pro wrestling persona has resulted in Usman calling the challenger “a rotten piece of sh*t.” But in the cage, the two are well-matched, with Covington bringing one of the better fights to the champ in recent years.
In the co-main event, meanwhile, Weili Zhang was on the hunt to reclaim her title, after Rose Namajunas captured it via head kick earlier this year. Their rematch might not have the personal beef that the main event did, but it was no less compelling.
Official weigh-ins for UFC 268 take place Friday in New York City, getting underway at 9AM. We’ll have the results as they happen!
There was just a wee bit of drama during the UFC 268 official weigh-in on Friday. Weili Zhang hit the (digital) scale in New York 0.2lbs over, but made weight after stripping down behind the barrier. Newcomer Bruno Souza, stepping in on short notice to replace TJ Laramie against Melsik Baghdasaryan, came in heavy, 2.4lbs over the non-title featherweight limit.
Things got a little more interesting from there. Also making his debut at UFC 268, CJ Vergara, who won his way into the promotion on the Contender Series earlier this year, missed weight by 1.4lbs. He was followed by Vicente Luque, the back-up fighter for the main event. Needing to make championship weight, Luque was instead heavy, at 172.2lbs.
Luckily, it does not appear Luque’s services will be required, as both Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington successfully made weight.
UFC 268: Usman vs. Covington 2 Weigh-In Results
Main Card
Welterweight: Kamaru Usman (c) (169) vs. Colby Covington (169.4) – for the UFC welterweight championship
Women’s Strawweight: Rose Namajunas (c) (115) vs. Zhang Weili (115) – for the UFC women’s strawweight championship
Bantamweight: Frankie Edgar (135.6) vs. Marlon Vera (135)
Featherweight: Shane Burgos (145.6) vs. Billy Quarantillo (145.4)
Lightweight: Justin Gaethje (155.6) vs. Michael Chandler (155.2)
Preliminary Card
Middleweight: Alex Pereira (185.8) vs. Andreas Michailidis (185)
Lightweight: Al Iaquinta (155.8) vs. Bobby Green (155.2)
Middleweight: Phil Hawes (185.4) vs. Chris Curtis (186)
Middleweight: Edmen Shahbazyan (185.4) vs. Nassourdine Imavov (184.6)
Early Preliminary Card
Welterweight: Ian Garry (169.6) vs. Jordan Williams (170.6)
Heavyweight: Gian Villante (260.6) vs. Chris Barnett (263.8)
Light Heavyweight: Dustin Jacoby (203.6) vs. John Allan (205)
Featherweight: Melsik Baghdasaryan (145.4) vs. Bruno Souza (148.4)*
Flyweight: CJ Vergara (127.4)** vs. Ode Osbourne (125.2)
Welterweight: Vicente Luque (172.2)*** – backup fighter
* Souza missed the featherweight non-title limit by 2.4lbs
** Vergara missed the flyweight non-title limit by 1.4lbs
*** Luque, weighing in as a back-up fighter for the main event, misses the welterweight limit by 2.2lbs (presumably, he would need to hit championship weight)
