The UFC’s March 23 Fight Night card, which right now stands as UFC Vegas 89 (or UFC Fight Night 240) is expected to be headlined by Rose Namajunas vs. Amanda Ribas in a women’s flyweight bout — with promotion officials recently announcing the full slate of fights.
Among a handful of newly announced bouts, British heavyweight Mick Parkin steps in to replace Chris Barnett, with the new pairing representing two of the top prospects in the division.
Usman (10-2) won The Ultimate Fighter 30 at heavyweight and has yet to taste defeat inside the octagon, defeating Jake Collier and Justin Tafa and knocking out Zac Pauga to claim the TUF crown. Usman, brother of former UFC welterweight champ Kamaru Usman, has seen both his post-TUF fights go the distance.
Mick Parkin (8-0) has yet to taste defeat in his professional career period. The 2022 Dana White’s Contender Series product went 2-0 last year.
In addition to Usman vs. Parkin, Russian women’s bantamweight Dariya Zgeleznykova (8-1) also makes her debut on March 23, against the undefeated Montserrat Rendon of Mexico. With the division thinned out in recent years, Zgeleznykova offers some much needed fresh blood (as does Rendon, for that matter, who is 1-0 in the company so far).
The UFC’s March 23 event takes place at the Apex in Las Vegas with the following match-ups announced/reported:
- Amanda Ribas vs. Rose Namajunas
- Billy Quarantillo vs. Gabriel Miranda
- Mohammed Usman vs. Mick Parkin
- Kurt Holobaugh vs. Trey Ogden
- Ricardo Ramos vs. Julian Erosa
- Davey Grant vs. Cody Gibson
- Jarno Errens vs. Steven Nguyen
- Edmen Shahbazyan vs. Duško Todorović
- Fernando Padilla vs. Luis Pajuelo
- Karl Williams vs. Junior Tafa
- Montserrat Rendon vs. Darya Zheleznyakova
