| UFC on ESPN: Overeem vs. Rozenstruik | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 The poster for UFC on ESPN: Overeem vs. Rozenstruik | ||||
| Promotion | Ultimate Fighting Championship | |||
| Date | December 7, 2019 (2019-12-07) | |||
| Venue | Capital One Arena | |||
| City | Washington, D.C., United States | |||
| Attendance | 10,816[1] | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
| ||||
UFC on ESPN: Overeem vs. Rozenstruik (also known as UFC on ESPN 7) was amixed martial arts event produced by theUltimate Fighting Championship that took place on December 7, 2019 atCapital One Arena inWashington, D.C., United States.[2][3]
The event was the second that the promotion had contested in the American capital, followingUFC Live: Cruz vs. Johnson in October 2011.[3]
The event was also dubbed 'Fight Like Hell Night' and held in honor of the lateESPN broadcasterStuart Scott, who died from cancer in 2015.[4][5]
A heavyweight bout between former2010 K-1 World Grand Prix Champion,Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion andUFC Heavyweight Championship challengerAlistair Overeem andWalt Harris was expected to serve as the event headliner.[6][7] However on November 1, Harris withdrew from the event due to the ongoing search for his missing stepdaughter, whose remains were found a month after her disappearance.[8][9] He was replaced byJairzinho Rozenstruik.[10]
A women's strawweight bout between formerUFC Women's Strawweight Championship challengerCláudia Gadelha andCynthia Calvillo was scheduled for the event. However on October 22, it was announced that Gadelha was forced to withdraw from the bout due to a broken finger and a torn ligament.[11] She was replaced byMarina Rodriguez.[12]
A women's strawweight bout betweenCortney Casey and formerInvicta FC Strawweight ChampionVirna Jandiroba was scheduled for the event.[13] However, Casey pulled out on October 31 due to undisclosed reasons. She was replaced by another former Invicta FC Strawweight ChampionLívia Renata Souza.[14] In turn, Souza pulled out of the fight a few weeks later and was replaced by promotional newcomerMallory Martin.[15]
A middleweight bout betweenAlonzo Menifield andTrevor Smith was scheduled for the event. However on November 10, it was reported that Menifield pulled out of the event for an undisclosed reason and was replaced byMakhmud Muradov.[16]
Mickey Gall was expected to face formerWEC Welterweight Champion and interimUFC Welterweight ChampionCarlos Condit at the event.[17] However, Condit pulled out on November 13 due to a detached retina and the bout was subsequently canceled.[18][19]
A featherweight bout betweenChris Fishgold andBilly Quarantillo was scheduled for the event. However, Fishgold withdrew from the bout on November 27 for an undisclosed reason.[20] He was replaced by Jacob Kilburn.[21]
At the weigh-ins,Cynthia Calvillo and Matt Sayles missed the required weight for their respective fights. Calvillo weighed in at 120.5 pounds, 4.5 pounds over the strawweight non-title fight limit of 116 pounds. Sayles weighed in at 148.5 pounds, 2.5 pounds over the featherweight non-title fight limit of 146 pounds. Both bouts were held at a catchweight. Calvillo and Sayles were fined 30% and 20% of their purses, which went to their opponents Rodriguez and Mitchell.[22]
| Main Card (ESPN) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| Heavyweight | Jairzinho Rozenstruik | def. | Alistair Overeem | KO (punch) | 5 | 4:56 | |
| Catchweight (120.5 lb) | Marina Rodriguez | vs. | Cynthia Calvillo | Draw (majority) (29–28, 28–28, 28–28) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Heavyweight | Ben Rothwell | def. | Stefan Struve | TKO (punches) | 2 | 4:57 | [a] |
| Women's Bantamweight | Aspen Ladd | def. | Yana Kunitskaya | TKO (punches) | 3 | 0:33 | |
| Bantamweight | Cody Stamann | vs. | Song Yadong | Draw (majority) (29–27, 28–28, 28–28) | 3 | 5:00 | [b] |
| Bantamweight | Rob Font | def. | Ricky Simón | Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 30–27) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Preliminary Card (ESPN) | |||||||
| Welterweight | Tim Means | def. | Thiago Alves | Submission (guillotine choke) | 1 | 2:38 | |
| Featherweight | Billy Quarantillo | def. | Jacob Kilburn | Submission (triangle choke) | 2 | 3:18 | |
| Catchweight (148.5 lb) | Bryce Mitchell | def. | Matt Sayles | Submission (Twister) | 1 | 4:20 | |
| Lightweight | Joe Solecki | def. | Matt Wiman | Decision (unanimous) (30–26, 30–26, 30–27) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Early Preliminary Card (ESPN+) | |||||||
| Women's Strawweight | Virna Jandiroba | def. | Mallory Martin | Submission (rear-naked choke) | 2 | 1:16 | |
| Middleweight | Makhmud Muradov | def. | Trevor Smith | KO (punch) | 3 | 4:09 | |
The following fighters received $50,000 bonuses.[24]
