| UFC 216: Ferguson vs. Lee | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 The poster for UFC 216: Ferguson vs. Lee | ||||
| Promotion | Ultimate Fighting Championship | |||
| Date | October 7, 2017 (2017-10-07) | |||
| Venue | T-Mobile Arena | |||
| City | Paradise, Nevada | |||
| Attendance | 10,638[1] | |||
| Total gate | $677,999.50[1] | |||
| Buyrate | 200,000[2] | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
| ||||
UFC 216: Ferguson vs. Lee was amixed martial arts event produced by theUltimate Fighting Championship held on October 7, 2017 atT-Mobile Arena inParadise, Nevada, part of theLas Vegas metropolitan area.[3]
AUFC Heavyweight Championship bout between current championStipe Miocic and former two-time championCain Velasquez was initially targeted to headline this event.[4] After that pairing failed to materialize, the promotion announced plans for an interimUFC Lightweight Championship bout betweenThe Ultimate Fighter: Team Lesnar vs. Team dos Santos welterweight winnerTony Ferguson andKevin Lee to serve as the main event.[5][6]
AUFC Flyweight Championship bout between current championDemetrious Johnson andRay Borg was expected to headlineUFC 215.[7] However, the fight was canceled a day before the event, as Borg was forced to withdraw from the fight due to illness. His illness was unrelated to his weight cut, sources say.[8] The fight was later rescheduled for this event. If successful, Johnson would have the all-time most consecutive UFC title defenses in any division, with eleven.[9]
Abel Trujillo was expected to faceLando Vannata at the event. However, Trujillo was removed from the card on August 14 for undisclosed reasons and was replaced byBobby Green.[10]
Paige VanZant was expected to faceJessica Eye at the event. However, VanZant pulled out of the fight on September 25 citing a back injury and the bout was scrapped.[11]
A women's flyweight bout between promotional newcomersAndrea Lee andKalindra Faria was expected to be a late addition to this event, as it was announced on September 28.[12] However a few hours later, it was revealed that Lee was pulled from the contest as she didn't go through theUSADA testing pool for six months. Usually short notice fights do not need to follow such rule, but since she has failed a drug test in the past, Lee must fulfill that requirement.[13] She was replaced by fellow promotional newcomerMara Romero Borella.[14]
A lightweight bout betweenNik Lentz and formerBellator Lightweight ChampionWill Brooks was slated for the preliminary portion of the card. However the pairing was scrapped during the weigh-ins for the event, as Lentz was stricken with "medical issues" and deemed unfit to compete.[15]
A heavyweight bout between former heavyweight championFabrício Werdum andDerrick Lewis was slated for the main card. However, the fight was scrapped the day of the event when Lewis couldn't move due to back pain from a previous back injury. As a result,Walt Harris, who was originally scheduled to faceMark Godbeer in a preliminary bout, was tabbed as a short-notice opponent for Werdum.[16]
| Main Card | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| Lightweight | Tony Ferguson | def. | Kevin Lee | Submission (triangle choke) | 3 | 4:02 | [a] |
| Flyweight | Demetrious Johnson (c) | def. | Ray Borg | Submission (armbar) | 5 | 3:15 | [b] |
| Heavyweight | Fabrício Werdum | def. | Walt Harris | Submission (armbar) | 1 | 1:05 | |
| Women's Flyweight | Mara Romero Borella | def. | Kalindra Faria | Submission (rear-naked choke) | 1 | 2:54 | |
| Lightweight | Beneil Dariush | vs. | Evan Dunham | Draw (majority) (29–28, 28–28, 28–28) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Preliminary Card (FX) | |||||||
| Bantamweight | Cody Stamann | def. | Tom Duquesnoy | Decision (split) (29–28, 28–29, 30–27) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Lightweight | Lando Vannata | vs. | Bobby Green | Draw (split) (29–27, 27–29, 28–28) | 3 | 5:00 | [c] |
| Women's Strawweight | Poliana Botelho | def. | Pearl Gonzalez | Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 30–27) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Flyweight | Matt Schnell | def. | Marco Beltrán | Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 29–28, 30–27) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Preliminary Card (UFC Fight Pass) | |||||||
| Flyweight | John Moraga | def. | Magomed Bibulatov | KO (punch) | 1 | 1:38 | |
| Middleweight | Brad Tavares | def. | Thales Leites | Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–26, 30–26) | 3 | 5:00 | |
The following fighters were awarded $50,000 bonuses:[18]
The following is the reported payout to the fighters as reported to theNevada State Athletic Commission. It does not include sponsor money and also does not include the UFC's traditional "fight night" bonuses. The total disclosed payout for the event was $2,178,000.[19]
Although not included on the NSAC's initial report, Mark Godbeer ($15,000/$15,000) was paid his show purse and a win bonus after he was removed from his scheduled bout with Walt Harris on the day of the event.[19]
With his win, Johnson brokeAnderson Silva's record for most consecutive title defenses (11).[20]
