| UFC on ESPN: Nicolau vs. Perez | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 The poster for UFC on ESPN: Nicolau vs. Perez | ||||
| Promotion | Ultimate Fighting Championship | |||
| Date | April 27, 2024 (2024-04-27) | |||
| Venue | UFC Apex | |||
| City | Enterprise, Nevada, United States | |||
| Attendance | Not announced[1] | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
| ||||
UFC on ESPN: Nicolau vs. Perez (also known asUFC on ESPN 55 andUFC Vegas 91) was a mixed martial arts event produced by theUltimate Fighting Championship that took place on April 27, 2024, at theUFC Apex facility, inEnterprise, Nevada, part of theLas Vegas Metropolitan Area, United States.[2]
A flyweight rematch between formerRizin Bantamweight ChampionManel Kape andMatheus Nicolau was expected to headline the event.[3] The pairing previously met atUFC Fight Night: Edwards vs. Muhammad in March 2021 which Nicolau won by controversial split decision.[4] Their second meeting was previously scheduled forUFC Fight Night: Ankalaev vs. Walker 2 in January 2024 but Kape missed weight and the bout was subsequently cancelled.[5] In turn, Kape pulled out due to a rib injury and was replaced by formerUFC Flyweight Championship challengerAlex Perez.[6][7]
A lightweight bout betweenRoad to UFC Season 1 lightweight winnerAnshul Jubli and Maheshate Hayisaer was scheduled for this event.[8] However, Jubli pulled out for unknown reasons and was replaced byGabriel Benítez.[9]
A lightweight bout between James Llontop andLando Vannata was scheduled for this event.[10] However, Vannata pulled out for unknown reasons and was replaced byGabriel Green.[11] Green was also withdrew from the bout for unknown reasons and he was replaced by newcomer Chris Padilla.[12]
Joel Álvarez and Mateusz Rębecki were expected to meet in a lightweight bout.[13] However, Álvarez pulled out due to undisclosed reasons.[14] Rębecki instead facedCarlos Diego Ferreira atUFC on ESPN: Lewis vs. Nascimento on May 11.[15]
At the weigh-ins, James Llontop and David Onama missed weight. Llontop weighed in at 156.5 pounds, half a pound over the lightweight non-title fight limit. Onama weighed in at 148.5 pounds, two and a half pounds over the featherweight non-title fight limit. Both bouts proceeded at catchweight with both fighters forfeiting 20% of their purses, which went to their opponents Chris Padilla andJonathan Pearce, respectively.[16]
| Main card (ESPN / ESPN+) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| Flyweight | Alex Perez | def. | Matheus Nicolau | KO (punch) | 2 | 2:16 | |
| Light Heavyweight | Bogdan Guskov | def. | Ryan Spann | TKO (punches) | 2 | 3:16 | |
| Women's Flyweight | Karine Silva | def. | Ariane Lipski | Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 29–28, 29–28) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Heavyweight | Jhonata Diniz | def. | Austen Lane | KO (punches) | 2 | 2:12 | |
| Catchweight (148.5 lb) | David Onama | def. | Jonathan Pearce | Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Welterweight | Uroš Medić | def. | Tim Means | TKO (punches) | 1 | 2:09 | |
| Preliminary card (ESPN2 / ESPN+) | |||||||
| Bantamweight | Victor Henry | def. | Rani Yahya | TKO (head kick and punches) | 3 | 2:36 | |
| Lightweight | Austin Hubbard | def. | Michał Figlak | Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Heavyweight | Don'Tale Mayes | def. | Caio Machado | Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Women's Strawweight | Ketlen Souza | def. | Marnic Mann | Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 30–27) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Catchweight (156.5 lb) | Chris Padilla | def. | James Llontop | Submission (rear-naked choke) | 1 | 4:33 | |
| Women's Flyweight | Ivana Petrović | def. | Liang Na | Submission (arm-triangle choke) | 3 | 1:29 | |
| Lightweight | Maheshate Hayisaer | def. | Gabriel Benítez | Decision (split) (28–29, 29–28, 29–28) | 3 | 5:00 | |
The following fighters received $50,000 bonuses.[18]
As the startingring announcerJoe Martinez became ill during the event, UFC's roving reporterCharly Arnolt replaced him briefly and became the first female ring announcer in the promotion's history.[19]
