Las Vegas – UFC® makes its highly anticipated return to Salt Lake City, Utah with a blockbuster welterweight championship bout that will see Kamaru Usman run it back with No. 2 ranked contender Leon Edwards.
UFC® 278: USMAN vs. EDWARDS 2 will take place Sat., August 20 at Vivint Arena and will be available live on ESPN+ PPV. Tickets are set to go on sale to the public on Friday, June 24 and will be available through ticketmaster.com.
No. 1 men’s pound-for-pound fighter Usman (20-1, fighting out of Dallas, Texas by way of Auchi, Nigeria) looks to continue his dominant run atop the welterweight division by netting his 20th consecutive win. The winner of The Ultimate Fighter season 21, he holds spectacular victories over Colby Covington (twice), Jorge Masvidal (twice) and Gilbert Burns. Usman now aims to secure his sixth straight title defense by stopping Edwards in emphatic fashion.
Edwards (19-3 1NC, fighting out of Birmingham, England) has amassed an impressive 10-fight unbeaten streak since his first encounter with Usman in late 2015. A well-rounded competitor with KO power, he has secured memorable victories against Nate Diaz, Rafael Dos Anjos and Vicente Luque to earn his first UFC title opportunity. Edwards now intends to shock the world by dethroning Usman to achieve his dream of capturing UFC gold.
UFC® 278: USMAN vs. EDWARDS 2 marks the first event in Salt Lake City since UFC FIGHT NIGHT: RODRÍGUEZ vs. CACERES on August 6, 2016. The event is the result of a partnership with Smith Entertainment Group (Vivint Arena) and Utah Sports Commission.
Media members wishing to apply for UFC® 278: USMAN vs. EDWARDS 2 credentials may sign up here.
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 Vivint Arena
Vivint Arena is the home of the NBA Utah Jazz with a basketball seating capacity of 18,306 and serves as the region’s premier sports and entertainment venue in downtown Salt Lake City. It welcomes more than 100 events annually with nearly two million guests as the community gathering place. Vivint Arena has hosted the 1993 NBA All-Star Game, 2002 Olympic Winter Games, NCAA men’s basketball tournament and two NBA Finals. The arena has featured some of the biggest names in the music world with Garth Brooks, U2, Taylor Swift and The Rolling Stones among the largest concert draws in the arena’s history. In 2017, the arena underwent a $125 million renovation on all six levels to upgrade amenities, including food offerings, rebooted technology, fully-cushioned seats in the lower and upper bowls, new entry plaza, and a 12,000-square-foot atrium at the main doors. More information at www.vivintarena.com.
About Utah Sports Commission
The Utah Sports Commission was created to be a catalyst for Utah in its Olympic legacy efforts and to help enhance Utah’s economy, image, and quality of life through the attraction, promotion, and development of national and international sports. Since the 2002 Olympics and Paralympics, the Utah Sports Commission has attracted nearly 900 major events to the state. The Sports Commission works closely with communities, sports entities, and organizations to provide event services ranging from the bid process, on-site logistics, volunteer coordination, sponsorships and promotional opportunities, and other related services. It is a not-for-profit 501(c)6 business league and Utah Sports Commission Foundation, a not-for-profit 501(c)3 charitable organization, is governed by an all-volunteer Board of Trustees consisting of statewide sports, business, community, and government leaders. For more information, visit www.utahsportscommission.com and follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
About ESPN+
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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Fans sign up to ESPN+ for just $6.99 a month (or $69.99 per year) at ESPN.com, ESPNplus.com or on the ESPN App (mobile and connected devices). It is also available as part of The Disney Bundle that gives subscribers access to Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu for $13.99/month (Hulu w/ads) or $19.99/month (Hulu w/o ads). Subscribers to Hulu + Live TV also receive ESPN+ at no additional cost.
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.
