Las Vegas – UFC® returns to Dallas, Texas for the first time in almost four years, headlined by a thrilling women’s bantamweight championship rematch that will see Julianna Peña go for her first successful title defense against former titleholder and current women’s featherweight champion Amanda Nunes. The co-main event will feature the crowning of an interim flyweight champion when former titleholder Brandon Moreno runs it back with Kai Kara-France.
UFC® 277: PENA vs. NUNES 2 takes place Saturday, July 30 at American Airlines Center in Dallas with the main card at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT on ESPN+ PPV. The prelims will be seen on ESPN, ESPN Deportes and ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT with the night’s action starting at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT with Early Prelims on ESPN+ (English and Spanish) and UFC Fight Pass.
UFC® 277: PENA vs. NUNES 2 tickets will go on sale Friday, June 3 at 10 a.m. CT and are available for purchase at ticketmaster.com. Ticket sales are limited to eight (8) per person. UFC Fight Club® members will have the opportunity to purchase tickets Wednesday, June 1 at 10 a.m. CT via the website ufcfightclub.com. A special Internet ticket pre-sale will be available to UFC newsletter subscribers Thursday, June 2 starting at 10 a.m. CT. To access this presale, users must register for the UFC newsletter through UFC.com.
Peña (12-4, fighting out of Chicago, Ill. by way of Spokane, Wash.) is coming off one of the most spectacular wins in MMA history, when she dethroned Nunes via submission late last year. The first woman to win The Ultimate Fighter, she has also delivered notable victories over Sara McMann, Nicco Montaño and Cat Zingano. Peña now hopes to finish Nunes a second time and continue building her legacy atop the women’s bantamweight division.
The greatest women’s fighter in combat sports history, Nunes (21-5, fighting out of Coral Springs, Fla. by way of Bahia, Brazil) intends to remind fans why she remained unbeaten for over six years. The only women’s UFC double-champion, she holds thrilling wins over Ronda Rousey, Cris Cyborg and Holly Holm. Nunes now plans to avenge her loss to Peña by delivering another show-stealing performance to reclaim the belt.
Moreno (19-6-2, fighting out of Tijuana, Mexico) is determined to take out Kara-France and secure a fourth encounter with current champion Deiveson Figueiredo. Throughout his UFC run, the former titleholder has also earned impressive wins against Bradon Royval, Jussier Formiga and Louis Smolka. Moreno now looks to secure the interim flyweight championship by once again defeating Kara-France.
Kara-France (24-9 1NC, fighting out of Auckland, New Zealand) expects to make the most of his first UFC title opporunity. Currently riding an impressive three-fight win streak, he has earned memorable victories over Askar Askarov, Cody Garbrandt and Rogério Bontorin. Kara-France now plans to even the score with Moreno and bring another UFC championship back to New Zealand.
Additional bouts on the card include:
- Texas’ own and No. 5 ranked heavyweight contender Derrick Lewis (26-9 1NC, fighting out of Houston, Texas) locks horns with surging No. 11 Sergei Pavlovich (15-1, fighting out of Moscow, Russia)
- No. 4 ranked light heavyweight contender Magomed Ankalaev (17-1, fighting out of Makhachkala, Russia) faces No. 5 Anthony Smith (36-16, fighting out of Omaha, Neb.) in a bout with title implications
- Drew Dober (24-11 1NC, fighting out of Denver, Colo. by way of Omaha, Neb.) battles Rafael Alves (20-10, fighting out of Miami, Fla. by way of Para, Brazil) in an exciting lightweight matchup
- Ramiz Brahimaj (10-4, fighting out of Dallas, Texas by way of the Bronx, N.Y.) clashes with Michael Morales (13-0, fighting out of Tijuana, Mexico) at welterweight
- Nicolae Negumereanu (12-1, fighting out of Brasov, Romania) takes on debuting Dana White’s Contender Series signee Ihor Potieria (20-2, fighting out of Kiev, Ukraine) at light heavyweight
- Justin Tafa (5-3, fighting out of Brisbane, Australia) meets Don’Tale Mayes (9-4, fighting out of Louisville, Ken.) in a hard-hitting heavyweight bout
- No. 15 ranked lightweight contender Diego Ferreira (17-5, fighting out of Pharr, Texas by way of Careiro da Várzea, Amazonas, Brazil) looks to defend his spot in the rankings against Drakkar Klose (12-2-1, fighting out of Glendale, Ariz. by way of South Haven, Mich.)
- Ji Yeon Kim (9-5-2, fighting out of Incheon, South Korea) faces Mariya Agapova (10-3, fighting out of Pavlodar, Kazakhstan) in a flyweight bout
For the latest information on additional bouts for this event, please visit www.ufc.com. All bouts live and subject to change.
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About UFC®
UFC® is the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization (MMA), with more than 688 million fans and 198 million social media followers. The organization produces more than 40 live events annually in some of the most prestigious arenas around the world, while broadcasting to nearly 900 million TV households across more than 170 countries. UFC’s athlete roster features the world’s best MMA athletes representing more than 75 countries. The organization’s digital offerings include UFC FIGHT PASS®, one of the world’s leading streaming services for combat sports. UFC is owned by global entertainment, sports and content company Endeavor, and is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram and TikTok: @UFC.
About American Airlines Center
Designed by architectural wizard David M. Schwarz and Dallas based HKS, Inc., American Airlines Center is considered one of the nation’s top arenas. Since opening its doors in 2001, the Center has been setting the precedent for sporting and live entertainment events. Bringing in a wide variety of big name shows as well as being home of both the Dallas Mavericks and Dallas Stars, American Airlines Center consistently displays its unique versatility. Billboard Magazine named American Airlines Center the 5th busiest arena in the world in 2021.
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ESPN+ is the industry-leading sports streaming service that offers fans in the U.S. thousands of live sports events, original programming not available on ESPN’s linear TV or digital networks and exclusive editorial content from dozens of ESPN writers and reporters. Launched in April 2018, ESPN+ has grown to more than 22.3 million subscribers.
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About ESPN
ESPN, the world’s leading sports entertainment brand, features eight U.S. television networks, direct-to-consumer ESPN+, ESPN Radio, ESPN.com, endeavors on every continent around the world, and more. ESPN is 80 percent owned by ABC, Inc. (an indirect subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company) and 20 percent by Hearst.
