UFC® RETURNS TO KASEYA CENTER WITH BANTAMWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP BOUT BETWEEN (C) SEAN O’MALLEY AND (#6) MARLON VERA

Las Vegas – UFC® returns to Miami, Fla. with another electric card, headlined by a highly anticipated rematch between UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley and No. 6 ranked contender Marlon Vera. Also, an action packed five-round co-main event sees No. 3 lightweight contender Dustin Poirier square off with No. 12 ranked Benoit Saint Denis.

UFC® 299: O’MALLEY vs. VERA 2 takes place Saturday, March 9 at the Kaseya Center, with the main card available on ESPN+ PPV at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT. The prelims will be airing on ESPNEWS, ESPN Deportes, and ESPN+ at 8:00 p.m. ET/5:00 p.m. PT, and will join in progress on ESPN starting at 8:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. PT. The early prelims will be available for viewing exclusively on ESPN + and UFC Fight Pass at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT.

UFC®299: O’MALLEY vs. VERA tickets will go on sale Friday, January 12 at 10 a.m. ET 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, January 10 at 10 a.m. ET via www.ufcfightclub.com. A special Internet ticket pre-sale will be available to UFC newsletter subscribers Thursday, January 11 starting at 10 a.m. ET. To access this presale, users must register for the UFC newsletter through UFC.com.

VIP tickets are available via On Location, the UFC’s Official VIP Experience Provider. Enjoy behind-the-scenes access with a VIP Experience package that can feature premium seating, post-fight octagon experience, all-inclusive hospitality, meet-and-greets with UFC fighters and more. Visit UFCVIP.com for more information

Media members wishing to apply for UFC®299: O’MALLEY vs. VERA 2 fight week credentials may sign up here.

UFC bantamweight champion O’Malley (17-1 1 NC, fighting out of Phoenix, Ariz.) looks to finally settle the score against the only man to hand him a loss. The Arizona-based fighter has delivered highlight performances against top talent such as Aljamain Sterling, Petr Yan, and Raulian Paiva. O’Malley now aims to build upon his legacy as champion by finishing his rival, Vera, in emphatic fashion.

Vera (21-8-1, fighting out of Chone, Manabi, Ecuador) intends to make the most of his first championship fight by defeating O’Malley for a second time. A versatile finisher and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt, Vera has claimed strong victories against Dominick Cruz, Frankie Edgar, and Pedro Munhoz. He now sets his sights on gold as he attempts to become the first ever Ecuadorian UFC champion.  

Poirier (29-8 1 NC, fighting out of Coconut Creek, Fla. by way of Lafayette, Louis.) returns to action seeking redemption. An Octagon veteran, the former Interim UFC lightweight champion holds wins over elite competition such as Conor McGregor (x2), Michael Chandler, and Dan Hooker. Poirier looks to nullify Saint Denis’ title ambitions with a dominant victory over the rising contender.

France’s Saint Denis (13-1 1 NC, fighting out of Paris, France) seeks to further his climb up the lightweight rankings by delivering a highlight finish against a top name. A Judo black belt with impressive striking, the Frenchmen is currently on a five-fight win steak and has finished the likes of Matt Frevola, Thiago Moises, and Ismael Bonfim in his last three outings. Saint Denis now looks to secure the biggest win of his career by defeating Poirier in an unforgettable showing.

Current official bouts on the card include:

  • Heavyweight contenders No. 5 Curtis Blaydes (17-4 1NC, fighting out of Chicago, Ill.) and No. 7 ranked Jailton Almeida (20-2, fighting out of Salvador, Bahia, Brazil) battle in a pivotal matchup
  • Exciting welterweights No. 4 ranked Gilbert Burns (22-6, fighting out of Boca Raton, Fla. by way of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) and Dana White’s Contender Series alumni No. 11 Jack Della Maddalena (16-2, fighting out of Perth, Western Australia) look to deliver fireworks
  • Welterweights attempt to steal the show as fan-favorite Kevin Holland (25-10 1NC, fighting out of Fort Worth, Texas) welcomes UFC newcomer Michael Page (21-2, fighting out of London, England) in what promises to be an epic standup clash.
  • No. 4 ranked flyweight contender Katlyn Chookagian (18-5, fighting out of Amity Harbor, N.Y. by way of Quakertown, Penn.) clashes with No. 7 Maycee Barber (13-2, fighting out of Sacramento, Calif.) in a pivotal matchup
  • No. 6 ranked lightweight Mateusz Gamrot (23-2 1 NC, fighting out of Poznan, Poland) takes on No.11 Rafael Dos Anjos (32-15, fighting out of Rio De Janeiro, Brazil) in a high-level bout
  • Former UFC champion and the current No. 5 bantamweight contender Petr Yan (16-5, fighting out of Yekaterinburg, Russia) meets No. 7 Song Yadong (21-7-1 1 NC, fighting out of Heilongjiang, China) in a highly anticipated matchup
  • No. 11 ranked bantamweight contender Pedro Munhoz (20-8 2 NC, fighting out of São Paulo, Brazil) goes toe-to-toe with Kyler Phillips (11-2, fighting out of Glendale, Ariz.)
  • The always exciting Michel Pereira (28-11, fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev.) takes on knockout specialist Michal Oleksiejczuk (19-6, fighting out of Barki, Poland) at middleweight
  • Dana White’s Contender Series alumnus CJ Vergara (12-4-1, fighting out of San Antonio, Texas) collides with Assu Almabayev (18-2, fighting out of Almaty, Kazakhstan) at flyweight
  • Heavyweight Robelis Despaigne (4-0, fighting out of Santiago de Cuba, Cuba) makes his UFC debut againstJosh Parisian (15-7, fighting out of Escanaba, Mich.)

For the latest information on additional bouts for this event, please visit www.ufc.com. All bouts are live and subject to change. Please click here to apply for the event.

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About UFC®

UFC® is the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization (MMA), with more than 700 million fans and 233 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 over 900 million TV households across more than 170 countries. UFC’s active fighter 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 sports and entertainment 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 KASEYA CENTER 

Located in the center of booming downtown Miami and the Entertainment District, Kaseya Center—home of the NBA Champion Miami HEAT—hosts 80+ non-basketball events each year including A-list concerts, family shows, sporting events, national conferences and more. Built with state-of-the-art sound and lighting and HD and electronic media signage inside and out, the impressive 19,600-seat Kaseya Center is currently ranked the #1 arena in Florida for the ninth consecutive year—and the 12th time during the past 13 years—according to both Pollstar and Billboard’s 2023 year-end rankings. Kaseya Center is also among the leading facilities in the country for hosting Latin entertainment. The Center has led the renaissance of downtown Miami over the past two decades, helping to transform the area into a thriving arts and entertainment district. The facility has hosted more than 1,200 events including diverse musical superstars such as Marc Anthony, Celine Dion, Ed Sheeran, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, The Killers, Bad Bunny, Carrie Underwood, Dua Lipa, Tool, Imagine Dragons, Kane Brown, Karol G, Drake, Andrea Bocelli and Paul McCartney, just to name a few. In 2009, Kaseya Center became among the first existing buildings in the country to have achieved LEED certification by the United States Green Building Council for its commitment to sustainability practices. More recently, in 2021, the Arena achieved its second LEED gold recertification. For more information about Kaseya Center, visit kaseyacenter.com. 

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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.