UFC returns to Orlando, February 24 with action-packed card
FEATURED BOUTS:
(#1) YOEL ROMERO vs. (#10) DAVID BRANCH
(#2) JESSICA ANDRADE vs. (#5) TECIA TORRIES
TICKETS FOR UFC FIGHT NIGHT AT AMWAY CENTER GO ON SALE FRIDAY, JAN. 12
Las Vegas – UFC returns to the Sunshine State with a thrilling fight card, featuring a battle between two exciting middleweight contenders, as No.1-ranked Yoel Romero looks to get back into the title picture when he clashes with No.10 David Branch. UFC FIGHT NIGHT® takes place at Orlando’s Amway Center on Saturday, Feb. 24.
In his most recent outing, Romero (12-2, fighting out of Coconut Creek, Fla. by way of Pinar del Rio, Cuba) came close to realizing his dream of being UFC champion. The 2000 Olympic silver medalist wrestler dropped a close and captivating decision to Robert Whittaker last summer, earning Fight of the Night honors in the process. Prior to the bout, Romero was undefeated at middleweight and scored stunning knockout wins over Chris Weidman, Lyoto Machida and Derek Brunson.
Looking to play spoiler and resume his climb up the middleweight rankings is dangerous grappler and boxer Branch (21-4, fighting out of Brooklyn, N.Y.). A two-division champion outside the UFC, Branch returned to the world’s largest MMA organization last year with a win over ranked Krzysztof Jotko. Throughout his career, he’s earned victories over Yushin Okami, Jesse Taylor and Paulo Filho. Following a recent setback against Luke Rockhold, Branch aims to use Romero as a stepping stone into the division’s top five.
Also at UFC FIGHT NIGHT®, top strawweight contenders collide when No.2-ranked Jessica Andrade faces No.5 Tecia Torres.
A former strawweight title challenger, Andrade (17-6, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) put on the most dominant performance of her career in September when she won a spectacular decision against Claudia Gadelha. During her stint in the UFC’s 115-pound weight class, she’s also netted impressive victories over Angela Hill, Joanne Calderwood and Jessica Penne. Andrade hopes an emphatic win will propel her into another title shot.
Torres (10-1, fighting out of Colorado Springs, Colo.) is gunning for a rubber match with newly-minted strawweight champion Rose Namajunas. The two originally met under the Invicta FC banner in 2013, with Torres winning a unanimous decision. Namajunas returned the favor in April 2016. Since then, Torres has gone on a three-fight winning streak, picking up victories against Bec Rawlings, Juliana Lima and Michelle Waterson.
Additional bouts on the card include:
Hometown welterweight Ben Saunders (21-8-2, fighting out of Orlando, Fla.) looks to blow the roof off the Amway Center when he takes on Alan Jouban (15-6, fighting out of Los Angeles, Calif.)
No.8-ranked bantamweight contender Sara McMann (11-4, fighting out of Gaffney, S.C.) welcomes Invicta FC champ Yana Kunitskaya (10-3, fighting out of Saint Petersburg, Russia)
Light heavyweight standout Gadzhimurad Antigulov (20-4, fighting out of Makhachkala, Russia) looks for his 15th consecutive win when he faces hot prospect Aleksandar Rakic (8-1, fighting out of Vienna, Austria)
In a battle of submission aces, Gilbert Burns (12-2, fighting out of Boca Raton, Fla. by way of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) meets Olivier Aubin-Mercier (11-2, fighting out of Montreal, Canada)
UFC FIGHT NIGHT will air live on FOX at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Saturday, Feb. 24, with the prelims kicking off the evening on FS1 at 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. PT and on UFC FIGHT PASS® at 3:30 p.m. ET/12:30 p.m. PT. Doors open at 2:30 p.m. ET/11:30 a.m. PT.
Tickets for UFC FIGHT NIGHT® go on sale Friday, Jan. 12 at 10 a.m. ET and are priced at $195, $160, $135, $110, $95, $85, $75, $65 and $55 USD (prices do not include applicable service charges or fees). Tickets are available at Ticketmaster.com or through the Amway Center box office. Ticket sales are limited to eight (8) per person.
UFC Fight Club® members will have the opportunity to purchase tickets Wednesday, Jan. 10 at 10 a.m. ET via the website www.ufcfightclub.com. A special Internet ticket pre-sale will be available to UFC newsletter subscribers Thursday, Jan. 11 starting at 10 a.m. ET. To access this presale, users must register for the UFC newsletter through UFC.com.
