UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum

In today's world, UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum remains a topic of great importance and interest to a wide public. Its relevance transcends borders and generations, and its impact has been felt in various spheres of society. From its emergence to the present, UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum has been the subject of debate, analysis and reflection, constantly generating new perspectives and approaches on its meaning and influence. In this article, we will explore the many facets of UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum, examining its evolution over time and its relevance in the contemporary context. Through a detailed analysis and a critical look, we will seek to delve deeper into the meaning of UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum and its impact on our lives, offering a comprehensive vision that allows us to understand its importance in today's world.

UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum
The poster for UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum
PromotionUltimate Fighting Championship
DateMarch 11, 2017
VenueCentro de Formação Olímpica do Nordeste
CityFortaleza, Brazil
Attendance14,069[1]
Event chronology
UFC 209: Woodley vs. Thompson 2 UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum UFC Fight Night: Manuwa vs. Anderson

UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum (also known as UFC Fight Night 106) was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on March 11, 2017, at the Centro de Formação Olímpica do Nordeste in Fortaleza, Brazil.[2]

Background

The event was the second that the promotion has hosted in Ceará, and first since UFC on Fuel TV: Nogueira vs. Werdum which was held at Ginásio Paulo Sarasate in June 2013.[2] This event was expected to be UFC Fight Night 107, but an initially planned UFN 106 in Las Vegas, Nevada never materialized, prompting the change in numbers.[3]

A middleweight bout between former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion and UFC 12 Heavyweight Tournament winner Vitor Belfort and The Ultimate Fighter: Team Jones vs. Team Sonnen middleweight winner Kelvin Gastelum was the event headliner.[4]

Ion Cuțelaba was briefly linked to a bout against Henrique da Silva at the event. However the bout never materialized due to an undisclosed injury for Cuțelaba. da Silva was expected to remain on the card against another opponent, but elected to take another fight at a separate event.[5][6]

Alex Nicholson was briefly linked to a bout with promotional newcomer Paulo Costa at the event. However, Nicholson was removed from the pairing in favor of Garreth McLellan.[7]

Max Griffin was expected to face Sérgio Moraes at the event. However, Griffin pulled out of the fight on March 2 citing an undisclosed injury.[8] He was replaced by promotional newcomer Davi Ramos.[9]

Godofredo Pepey and Kyle Bochniak were expected to face each other at the event. However, both fighters pulled out of the fight during the week leading up to the event citing injuries and the bout was scrapped.[10]

Results

Main Card (Fox Sports 1)
Weight class Method Round Time Notes
Middleweight Kelvin Gastelum vs. Vitor Belfort No Contest (overturned) 1 3:52 [a]
Light Heavyweight Maurício Rua def. Gian Villante TKO (head kick and punches) 3 0:59
Lightweight Edson Barboza def. Beneil Dariush KO (flying knee) 2 3:35
Flyweight Ray Borg def. Jussier Formiga Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28) 3 5:00
Women's Bantamweight Marion Reneau vs. Bethe Correia Draw (majority) (29–27, 28–28, 28–28) 3 5:00
Welterweight Alex Oliveira def. Tim Means Submission (rear-naked choke) 2 2:38
Preliminary Card (Fox Sports 1)
Lightweight Kevin Lee def. Francisco Trinaldo Submission (rear-naked choke) 2 3:12
Welterweight Sérgio Moraes def. Davi Ramos Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 30–27) 3 5:00
Bantamweight Joe Soto def. Rani Yahya Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–27, 29–27) 3 5:00
Lightweight Michel Prazeres def. Josh Burkman Submission (north-south choke) 1 1:42
Preliminary Card (UFC Fight Pass)
Featherweight Jeremy Kennedy def. Rony Jason Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–27) 3 5:00
Middleweight Paulo Costa def. Garreth McLellan TKO (body kick and punches) 1 1:17
  1. ^ Originally a TKO (punches) win for Gastelum; overturned after he tested positive for marijuana.

[11]

Bonus awards

The following fighters were awarded $50,000 bonuses:[12]

  • Fight of the Night: Not awarded
  • Performance of the Night: Kelvin Gastelum, Edson Barboza, Michel Prazeres and Paulo Costa

Aftermath

Gastelum was expected to face former UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva at UFC 212 on June 3. However, on April 6, he was pulled from the bout after he was flagged for a potential doping violation by USADA stemming from his bout against Belfort at this event. He tested positive for Carboxy-Tetrahydrocannabinol (Carboxy-THC) which is a metabolite of marijuana and/or hashish above the 180 ng/mL allowance by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) standard. The in-competition sample was collected on the night of this event. Gastelum was placed on a provisional suspension as a result of the positive drug test and he was expected to be afforded a full adjudication process.[13] On May 7, Gastelum's win was officially overturned and he was suspended 90 days (retroactive to the March 11 test date), and he's been fined 20 percent of his purse (which wasn't disclosed). The fine will be held by the commission.[14]

See also

References

  1. ^ Staff (2017-03-12). "UFC Fight Night 106 draws announced attendance of 14,069 for sell-out in Fortaleza, Brazil". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2017-03-12.
  2. ^ a b Marcelo Barone and Raphael Marinho (2016-12-07). "UFC forwards events in Fortaleza and Rio for March and June 2017" (in Portuguese). sportv.globo.com. Retrieved 2016-12-07.
  3. ^ John Morgan (2017-01-10). "UFC ditches plans for March 3 event in Las Vegas on eve of UFC 209". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2017-01-09.
  4. ^ Thomas Gerbasi (2016-12-14). "Gastelum faces Belfort in Fortaleza main event". ufc.com. Retrieved 2016-12-14.
  5. ^ Staff (2017-01-06). "Luis Henrique da Silva expected to fight at UFC Fight Night 107 – just not against Ion Cutelaba". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2017-01-06.
  6. ^ Guilherme Cruz (2017-01-10). "Luis Henrique da Silva faces RFA champion Jordan Johnson at UFC on FOX 23". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2017-01-10.
  7. ^ Staff (2017-01-20). "Garreth McLellan quickly replaces Alex Nicholson at UFC Fight Night 106". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2017-01-20.
  8. ^ Tristen Critchfield (2017-03-02). "Max Griffin announces withdrawal from UFC Fight Night 106 bout vs. Sergio Moraes". sherdog.com. Retrieved 2017-03-02.
  9. ^ Marcelo Barone and Raphael Marinho (2017-03-04). "UFC calls up David Ramos to face Serginho in Fortaleza" (in Portuguese). sportv.globo.com. Retrieved 2017-03-04.
  10. ^ Staff (2017-03-07). "Godofredo Pepey vs. Kyle Bochniak scrapped from UFC Fight Night 106 in Brazil". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2017-03-07.
  11. ^ "UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum". Ultimate Fighting Championship. Retrieved 2016-12-14.
  12. ^ Staff (2017-03-12). "UFC Fight Night 106 bonuses: With no 'Fight of Night,' who took home the 4 performance honors?". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2017-03-12.
  13. ^ Damon Martin (2017-04-06). "Kelvin Gastelum pulled from fight with Anderson Silva after testing positive for marijuana". foxsports.com. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
  14. ^ Fernanda Prates and Dann Stupp (2017-05-07). "Kelvin Gastelum's win over Vitor Belfort overturned, 90-day suspension issued". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2017-05-07.