Vancouver – UFC® , the world’s premier mixed martial arts promotion, confirmed today its return to Canada for the first time in almost four years when it hosts UFC® 289: NUNES vs. PEÑA 3 at Vancouver’s Rogers Arena on Saturday, June 10.
The event will be headlined by a highly anticipated rubber match that will see women’s featherweight and bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes defend her 135–pound belt against former titleholder and No. 1 contender Julianna Peña. Stay tuned for future bout announcements soon. “I’m so pumped to return to Canada,” UFC President Dana White said. “Some of the greatest events in my life were up in Canada. The fans are awesome and I love every city up in Canada. I can’t wait to deliver an awesome Pay–Per–View in Vancouver. We’re back!”
UFC® 289: NUNES vs. PEÑA 3 tickets will go on sale Friday, April 21 at 12 p.m. PT and are available for purchase at Ticketmaster.ca. Ticket sales are limited to eight (8) per person. A special Internet ticket pre–sale will be available to UFC newsletter subscribers Thursday, April 20 starting at 12 p.m. PT. To access this presale, users must register for the UFC newsletter through UFC.com.
UFC® 289: NUNES vs. PEÑA 3 main card will air live on Pay–Per–View starting at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT. Televised prelims will broadcast at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on TSN and RDS channels, with the night’s early prelims kicking off exclusively on UFC Fight Pass.
The greatest female fighter of all time, Nunes (22–5, fighting out of Coral Springs, Fla. by way of Bahia, Brazil) looks to set a new record for combined UFC women’s title defenses. A future UFC Hall of Fame inductee, she holds legendary KO wins over former champions Ronda Rousey, Holly Holm and Cris Cyborg. Nunes now aims to get the last laugh by stopping Pena in emphatic fashion.
Peña (12–5, fighting out of Chicago, Ill. by way of Spokane, Wash.) intends to once again stun the MMA world by finishing Nunes. The winner of The Ultimate Fighter season 18, she has also earned impressive victories against Sara McMann, Cat Zingano and Jessica Eye. Peña now has her sights set on reclaiming her spot atop the bantamweight division with a show–stealing performance.
Announced bouts on the card include:
Ranked middleweight contenders collide when No. 12 Nassourdine Imavov (12–4, fighting out of Paris, France) meets No. 15 Chris Curtis (30–10, fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev. by way of Cincinnati, Ohio, USA)
• No. 13 ranked featherweight contender Dan Ige (16–6, fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev. by way of Haleiwa, Hawaii) looks to halt the momentum of rising Nate Landwehr (17–4, fighting out of Clarksville, Tenn.)
• No. 13 ranked light heavyweight contender Khalil Rountree Jr. (12–5 1NC, fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev., USA) aims to spoil the 205–pound debut of No. 13 heavyweight Chris Daukaus (12–6, fighting out of Philadelphia, Penn., USA)
• Kyle Nelson (13–5–1, fighting out of Stoney Creek, Ont.) battles unbeaten Blake Bilder (8–0–1,fighting out of Costa Mesa, Calif., USA) in a featherweight tilt
• Marc–Andre Barriault (15–6 1NC, fighting out of Boca Raton, Fla., USA by way of Gatineau, Que.)locks horns with Eryk Anders (15–7 1NC, fighting out of Scottsdale, Ariz., USA by way of Birmingham, Ala., USA) in a hard–hitting middleweight bout
• No. 8 ranked flyweight contender Matt Schnell (16–7, fighting out of Shreveport, La., USA) takes on No. 10 David Dvorak (20–5, fighting out of Horice, Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic)
• Hakeem Dawodu (13–3–1, fighting out of Calgary, Alta.) returns to action against Lucas Almeida (14–1, fighting out of Sorocaba, Sao Paulo, Brazil) in an entertaining featherweight bout
• Miranda Maverick (13–4, fighting out of Denver, Colo., USA by way of Buffalo, Mo., USA) faces Jasmine Jasudavicius (8–2, fighting out of Niagara, Ont.) at flyweight
• Aiemann Zahabi (9–2, fighting out of Montreal, Que.) goes for his third consecutive win when he meets Aoriqileng (24–9, fighting out of Shanghai, China) in a bantamweight matchup
• Diana Belbita (14–7, fighting out of Stoney Creek, Ont.) meets Maria Oliveira (13–6, fighting out of Niteroi, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) at strawweight
