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UFC Fight Night: Ribas v Namajunas Weigh-in — Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is back inside the UFC Apex for the second straight week to stage UFC Vegas 89 later TONIGHT (Sat., March 23, 2024) in Las Vegas, Nevada. Headlining the ESPN+-streamed event is a women’s Flyweight fight between Amanda Ribas and Rose Namajunas. In the co-main event, Justin Tafa will face Karl Williams in a Heavyweight fight.

What’s Hot:

Rose Namajunas currently finds herself in the midst of a rare two-fight losing streak, dropping back-to-back fights to Carla Esparza — who dethroned her from the Strawweight mountain — and Manon Fiorot, who defeated “Thug Rose” in here 115-pound debut. The former 125-pound champion now finds herself looking up at a deep hole, which could get even deeper if she suffers her first-ever three-fight losing streak. It’s uncharted territory for a fighter who was previously 9-2 in her lass 11 before her funk.

As for Ribas, she has been inconsistently consistent, alternating wins and losses since 2020 to the tune of earning a 4-3 record in her last seven fights. Still, the scrappy Brazilian is holding on to a Top 10 ranking (just barely). All of that said, while she has earned some big wins along the way over Mackenzie Dern and Paige VanZant, she hasn’t secured that big one that will get her over the hump and closer to a title fight. A win over Namajunas will certainly help that cause. But it will behoove Ribas to not try to get into an all-out barn-burner because Namajunas is pretty technical and selective when it comes to her striking. The Brazilian bomber tends to get a bit overzealous at times, setting her up for trouble, as was the case against Marina Rodriguez and Maycee Barber.

The two talented ladies are pretty evenly matched, though Ribas may have a slight advantage in the jiu-jitsu department. If Namajunas takes Ribas out, it will help earn a spot in the Top 15, which will then help her ease her road back to the title. But that is much further down the road. For Ribas, defeating a former champion is the fight she needs to get her over that hump and into championship consideration.

Original Card vs. Actual Card:

Chris Barnett was forced out of his fight against Mohammed Usman for undisclosed reasons and was replaced by Mick Parkin, who is undefeated at 8-0. Parkin is 2-0 inside the Octagon after earning his way in via the Contender Series, and now looks to stops Usman’s three-fight win streak. “The Motor”is trying to make his imprint in the Heavyweight division and fight his way out of his younger brother’s (Kamaru Usman) shadow, eventually.

Karl Williams was initially slated to face Junior Tafa on this card, but Tafa was pulled in order for him to fill in for his brother, Justin Tafa, against Marcos Rogerio de Lima at UFC 298. So in an interesting twist, Justin then returned the favor to his brother and will now face Williams in the co-main event.

Gabriel Miranda was removed from his fight against Billy Quarantillo for unknown reasons and was replaced by Youssef Zalal, who is making his second run under the UFC banner.

Injuries:

Dusko Todorovic was forced out of his fight against Edmen Shahbazyan with a knee injury and was ultimately replaced by A.J. Dobson. Also, Stephanie Luciano was unfortunately forced out of her UFC debut bout against Julia Polastri after she came down with a case of dengue fever. Davey Grant was in line to face Cody Gibson but was forced out with an injury. As a result, former LFA Bantamweight champion, Miles Johns, was pegged as his late replacement.

New Blood:

Andre Lima made his pro MMA debut in Oct. 2022, and after seven straight wins he finds himself getting ready for his first fight under the UFC banner. He punched his ticket to the big show by defeating Rickson Thai Zenidim Bueno (say that five times fast) on the Contender Series. That was only his second fight to see the judges scorecards, with his other five coming via first-round knockout/technical knockout (TKO). He will be facing off against another undefeated newcomer — who is also a Contender Series alum — in Igor da Silva. The Brazilian powerhouse has finished all eight of his previous opponents, so this fight has a very good chance of ending early.

Darya Zheleznyakova will make her UFC debut five years after making her MMA debut, Since then, she has managed to rack up an 8-1 record, winning five of those via technical knockout (TKO). She will be facing Montserrat Rendon, who squeaked out a win in her UFC debut by defeating Tamaris Vidal via split-decision, improving her undefeated record to 6-0.

Luis Pajuelo scored an emphatic first-round finish over Robbie Ring on the Contender Series — his fifth straight win — to earn his spot on the bloated UFC roster, and now he’s out to make a great first impression. He will be taking on Fernando Padilla, who is coming off a loss to Kyle Nelson in Sept. 2023, which snapped his three-fight win streak.

How The ‘Prelims’ Look:

Miles Johns is 4-2-1 during his run inside the Octagon, but he hasn’t been able to to pick up that much momentum. His last fight against Dan Argueta was ruled a No Contest (NC), so he is trying to get a win against Cody Gibson who is just 1-1 so far inside the Octagon. He is coming off a loss to Brad Katona, so he’d love nothing more than to feel that great sensation of having his hand raised.

Julian Erosa and Ricardo Ramos are both coming off losses, with “Juicy J” losing his last two and “Carcacinha” coming off a defeat to Charles Jourdain, so it made sense to book them against one another.

Kurt Holobaugh is now in his third run with UFC, winning his welcome back fight against Austin Hubbard in Sept. 2023, his third straight win overall. It’s a nice turnaround after losing three straight inside the Octagon. His opponent, Trey Ogden, has had a rough go at it in his first run with the promotion, racking up a subpar 1-2-1 record. If he can’t get a win here, he will be on the chopping block.

Who Needs A Win Badly:

While Namajunas needs a win badly due to her two-fight losing streak, she will still be employed with the promotion should she come up short. The same guarantee can’t be made for Jarno Errens, who is also coming into the event with two straight losses. What’s worse, those are his lone two fights inside the Octagon, so if he can’t secure the “W” in his third try it could be a short UFC run for him.

Interest Level: 5/10

Justin Tafa is 3-0-1 in his last four fights inside the Octagon, which is a great turnaround after starting off his UFC career 1-3. His opponent, Karl Williams has won six in a row, which includes winning his first two fights under the UFC banner. This hard-hitting co-main event may not last too long, so don’t blink.

Payton Talbot got off to a nice start to his UFC career, submitting Nick Aguirre via rear-naked choke in Nov. 2023, improving his overall record to 7-0. His opponent Cameron Saaiman, on the other hand, suffered the first loss of his MMA career at the hands of Christian Rodriguez late last year. That said, he was 9-0 so he knows a thing or three about winning. This fight is my sleeper pick.

In his first time around, Youssef Zalal went 3-3-1, leading to his release. After earning three straight first-round stoppage wins under the Sparta Combat League, he gets a second chance to prove his worth on the biggest MMA stage of them all. Quarantillo has been alternating wins and losses over the last four years. He is coming off a win over Damon Jackson in Aug. 2023, so he would love nothing more to break his pattern against Zalal.

A.J. Dobson is coming off a win over Tafon Nchukwi, which earned him his first win inside the Octagon, snapping his two-fight losing streak in the process. As for his opponent Edmen Shahbazyan, he hasn’t been inside the cage since May 2023 after losing to Anthony Hernandez via third-round technical knockout (TKO). He hasn’t live up to the hype he had when he first came in, so maybe a nice finish here can be a reset button for him.

Enjoy the fights!

Full UFC Vegas 89 Fight Card:

UFC Vegas 89 Main Event On ESPN/ESPN+:

125 lbs.: Amanda Ribas vs. Rose Namajunas

UFC Vegas 89 Main Card on ESPN/ESPN+ (10 p.m. ET):

265 lbs.: Karl Williams vs. Justin Tafa
185 lbs.: Edmen Shahbazyan vs. AJ Dobson
135 lbs.: Payton Talbott vs. Cameron Saaiman
145 lbs.: Billy Quarantillo vs. Youssef Zalal
145 lbs.: Fernando Padilla vs. Luis Pajuelo

UFC Vegas 89 ‘Prelims’ Card on ESPN+ (7 p.m. ET):

155 lbs.: Kurt Holobaugh vs. Trey Ogden
145 lbs.: Ricardo Ramos vs. Julian Erosa
135 lbs.: Miles Johns vs. Cody Gibson
145 lbs.: Jarno Errens vs. Steven Nguyen
135 lbs.: Montserrat Rendon vs. Darya Zheleznyakova
125 lbs.: Igor da Silva vs. Andre Lima
265 lbs.: Mohammed Usman vs. Mick Parkin

*Fight card, bout order and number of fights remain subject to change.*

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Vegas 89 fight card right here, starting with the ESPN+ “Prelims” matches, which are scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. ET, then the remaining main card balance on ESPN (simulcast on ESPN+) at 10 p.m. ET.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC Vegas 89: “Namajunas vs. Ribas” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.